Columbia  (Hnit^cm'tp 


LIBRARY 


LI  YE  S 


OF    THE 


QUEENS  OF  SCOTLAND 

AND 

ENGLISH    PRINCESSES 

CONNECTED  WITH  THE  REGAL  SUCCESSION  OF   GREAT  BRITAIN. 

BY   AGNES   STRICKLANk 

AUTHOR    OF 

THE    "LIVES    OF    THE    QUEENS    OF    ENGLAND." 


"  The  treasures  of  antiquity  laid  up 
In  old  historic  rolls  I  opened." — Bbaumont. 


VOL    I, 


NEW   YORK: 
HARPER    &    BROTHERS,  PUBLISHERS, 

No.    82    CLIFF    ST. 
1851. 


^4-\ 


::) 


US 


^ 


CONTENTS 


INTRODUCTORY  PREFACE. 

LIFE  OF  MARGARET  TUDOR,  queen  of  JAMKS  IV.— 

PAGB 

CHAP.      1 1 

II 40 

m 85 

IV 128 

V 157 

VI 197 

LIFE  OF  MAGDALENE  OF  FRANCE,  first  queen  of  james  v.— 

CHAP.     1 249 

n 280 

LIFE  OF  MARY  OF  LORRAINE,  second  queen  of  james  v.— 

CHAP.     I.  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .311 

n 346 


INTRODUCTORY  PREFACE. 


The  Biographies  of  Royal  Females  who  have  played 
distinguished  parts  in  the  history  of  a  country — especially 
those  who  have  been  involved  in  the  storms  caused  by 
revolutions  in  popular  opinion — afford  not  only  instances 
of  lofty  and  heroic  characteristics  elicited  by  striking  re- 
verses of  fortune,  but  the  most  touching  examples  of  all 
that  is  lovely,  holy,  and  endearing  in  Womanhood. 

"  If,"  as  the  Duchess  de  Bourbon  said  to  her  unfortunate 
kinswoman,  Margaret  of  Anjou,'  "  a  book  were  to  be 
written  on  the  calamities  of  illustrious  ladies  of  royal 
birth,"  it  would,  doubtless,  exceed  in  pathos  and  dramatic 
interest  ail  the  trasredies  in  the  world.  It  would  form  an 
extensive  series  of  volumes,  in  which  daughters  of  every 
family  inheriting  the  fatal  distinction  of  royalty,  in  every 
age  and  country,  might  find  a  place  :  and  who  more 
mournfully  pre-eminent  than  Mary  Stuart,  and  several 
of  the  Princesses  connected  with  the  regal  succession  of 
Great  Britain  ?  Of  Queens  of  England  who  have  fallen 
by  the  hand  of  the  executioner,  or  died  broken-hearted 
exiles  in  foreign  lands,  it  is  unnecessary  to  speak  here, 
their  memorials  having  already  been  placed  before  the 
reader."  While  engaged  in  preparing  that  series  of  royal 
female  biographies,  materials  no  less  interesting  connect- 
ed with   cotemporary  Queens    of  the    sister  realm  were 

1  Chronicle  of  Gkougk  Chastellaine. 
^  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  England. 


I  N  T  IL  O  D  U  C  T  O  H  Y      P  11  E  F  A  C  E, 


elicited,  who.se  lives,  together  with  those  of  such  English 
Princesses  as  were  placed  in  the  direct  line  of  the  regal 
succession,  appeared  desirable  adjuncts  to  the  Lives  of 
the  Queens  of  En<^Iand.  They  are,  in  fact,  links  of  the 
same  family  chain. 

However  shadowy  the  catalogue  may  at  first  sight  ap- 
pear of  forgotten  northern  (Queens,  each  played  her  part 
distinctly,  whether  for  good  or  ill,  and  gave  a  color  to  the 
temper  of  the  times  in  which  her  lot  was  cast ;  each  had 
her  separate  glories  and  her  griefs. 

In  consequence  of  the  premature,  and,  in  too  many  in- 
stances, the  violent  deaths  of  the  Kings  of  Scotland,  almost 
every  reign  commenced  with  a  long  minority,  in  the 
course  of  which  there  was  invariably  a  struggle  between 
the  Queen-mother  and  the  great  nobles  of  the  realm  for 
the  tutelage  of  the  infant  sovereign,  and  the  exercise  of 
the  power  of  the  Crown.  The  Queen,  generally  a  princess 
of  foreign  birth,  for  such  was  even  a  daughter  of  the 
kindred  royal  line  of  England  considered,  had  little  chance 
against  the  turbulent  magnates,  by  whom  female  dom- 
ination was  held  in  scorn  ;  and  it  was  only  through 
the  influence  of  bribes,  intrigues,  and  fomenting  their 
jealousy  of  each  other,  that  a  Qaeen-mother  ever  succeeded 
in  grasping  the  reins  of  empire,  and  then  at  the  expense 
of  life-consuming  cares.  The  old  age  of  a  King  of  Scot- 
land was  forty,  and  very  few  Queens  attained  that  age. 

Who  were  the  Queens  of  Scotland?  This  work  will, 
we  trust,  answer  that  question  satisfactorily,  by  dispelling 
the  obscurity  in  which  the  lapse  of  centuries,  and  the 
translation  of  the  Scottish  Court  from  Holyrood  to  West- 
minster and  Windsor,  have  involved  the  Royal  Consorts 
of  the  Monarchs  of  the  sister  realm. 

The  things  we  look  upon  through  the  inverted  telescope 
of  Time  are  of  course  diminished,  the  lights  are  misty, 
and  the  shades  fade  into  deeper  darkness.  Yet  what  we 
see  are  like  daguerreotype  miniatures — reduced  impres- 


INTRODUCTORY     PREFACE.  vii 

sions  of  full-sized  realities.  Daguerreotypes  are  not  beau- 
tiful, but  true,  occasionally  precious  memorials,  where  no 
better  likenesses  can  be  obtained. 

The  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  Scotland,  in  the  modern 
series  which  I  have  the  honor  of  introducing  in  the  present 
volume,  commence  with  Margaret  Tudor,  the  consort  of 
James  lY.  of  Scotland,  and  daughter  of  Henry  YII.  of 
England  and  Elizabeth  of  York.  Margaret  Tudor,  like 
her  illustrious  predecessor  and  ancestress,  Margaret  Athe- 
ling,  was  an  English  Princess  m  the  direct  line  of  the 
regal  succession  of  that  realm,  and  a  Queen-consort  of 
Scotland.  Her  posterity  by  James  lY.  united  the  blood 
of  the  elder  line  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  Kings  and  the  Nor- 
man Conqueror,  blended  with  that  of  Bruce-Stuart  and 
Plantagenet-Tudor  in  one  rich  stream.  James  YI.  of 
Scotland,  doubly  her  great-grandson,  inherited  the  realms 
of  England  and  Ireland  as  the  representative  of  that 
princess,  whose  hereditary  rights  are  now  vested  in  her 
august  descendant.  Queen  Yictoria. 

The  Life  of  Mary  Stuart,  which  will  occupy  two  suc- 
cessive volumes  of  this  series,  was  in  preparation  long 
before  the  publication  of  that  of  Elizabeth  Tudor,  in  our 
Lives  of  the  Queens  of  England,  where  it  was  promised 
as  a  companion  biography,  but  a  separate  work. 

Inexorably  as  the  destiny  of  Mary  Stuart  was  influenced 
by  Elizabeth  of  England,  no  one  could  mix  the  personal 
annals  of  those  rival  Britannic  sovereigns  together  without 
producing,  as  Camden  has  done,  great  confusion,  and  im- 
pairing the  interest  attached  to  both  by  violating  the  indi- 
vidual unity  essential  to  biography  ;  for  they  were  stars 
shining  in  distinct  orbits,  and  never  visible  in  the  same 
hemisphere.  Their  lives  ought,  however,  to  be  read  in 
succession,  because  they  cast  reflected  lights  upon  each 
other,  and  are  calculated,  like  the  cotemporary  biog- 
raphies in  both  series,  to  illustrate  the  comparative  state 
of  society  in  the  sister  realms. 


Vlll  INTRODUCTORY     PREFACE. 

My  pledge  to  the  public  touching  the  Life  of  Mary 
Stuart  could  not  be  redeemed  till  after  the  arduous  under- 
taking in  which  my  sister  and  myself  were  engaged  was 
concluded.  The  accomplishment  of  that  task  occupied 
several  years,  in  the  course  of  which  fresh  sources  of 
information  connected  with  the  personal  history  of  Mary 
have  been  opened  both  in  France  and  England.  So 
numerous,  however,  are  the  works  on  this  subject  of  ever 
fresh  and  undying  interest,  that  although  not  one  of  .them 
has  been  written  since  the  publication  of  Prince  Labanoft's 
seven  volumes  of  her  letters,  and  La  Mothe  Fenelon's 
dispatches,  we  determined  not  to  infringe  on  the  pre- 
occupied ground  and  literary  property  of  other  authors,  by 
bringing  out  a  new  Life  of  Mary  Stuart  in  three  volumes 
singly,  but  resolved,  proceeding  on  our  own  original  track, 
to  introduce  it  into  a  new  series  of  royal  biographies  on 
the  same  plan  as  Tiie  Lives  of  ilie  Queens  of  England. 
The  biography  of  Mary  will,  of  course,  be  rendered  more 
perspicuous  and  intelligible  by  being  preceded  by  those  of 
the  three  Queens  in  the  present  volume,  and  followed  by 
that  of  her  aunt,  Margaret,  Countess  of  Lennox,  the 
mother  of  the  unfortunate  Darnley,  which  is  full  of  curi- 
ous information  bearing  on  the  much  contested  point  of 
the  guilt  or  innocence  of  Mary. 

The  selfish  and  short-sighted  policy  of  Margaret  Tudor, 
while  exercising  the  functions  of  Queen-Regent  for  her 
son  James  Y.,  her  intrigues  with  England,  the  intermina- 
ble embroilments  caused  by  her  marriages  and  divorces, 
sowed,  as  will  be  shown,  the  perilous  seeds  of  which  her 
unfortunate  descendants,  Mary  Stuart  and  Darnley,  were 
destined  to  reap  the  bitter  harvest. 

The  Life  of  James  the  Fifth's  first  consort,  Magdalene 
of  France,  having  important  connection  with  political 
relations,  but  no  entanglement  with  political  intrigues, 
comes  like  a  refreshing  interlude  of  sweet  and  pleasant 
things  between  the  turmoils  and  aaritations  detailed  in  the 


INTRODUCTORY     PREFACE.  IX 

more  eventful  histories  of  Margaret  Tudor  and  Mary  of 
Lorraine.  It  is,  in  sooth,  a  romantic  but  carefully  verified 
love-tale  of  royal  romance,  blended  with  the  splendid  pa- 
geantry and  costume  of  the  brilliant  courts  of  those  chival- 
ric  monarchs,  Francis  I.  of  France,  and  the  fifth  James 
Stuart  of  Scotland.  The  accomplishments  and  refined 
tastes  of  James  Y.,  like  those  of  his  illustrious  ancestor 
James  I.,  and  his  own  daughter  Mary,  were  unfortunately 
too  much  in  a  Ivance  of  their  era.  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ross, 
censures  the  great  increase  of  expense,  caused  by  the 
march  of  luxury  at  this  period,  as  injurious  to  morals, 
and  inconsistent  with  the  means  of  the  country. 

"  Here  is  to  be  remembered,"  he  says,  "  that  there  were 
many  new  ingines  and  devices,  as  well  of  bigging  {build- 
ing) of  palaces,  habiliments,  as  of  banqueting,  and  of 
men's  behavior,  first  begun  and  used  in  Scotland  at  this 
time,  after  the  fashion  they  had  seen  in  France.  Albeit 
it  seemed  to  be  very  comely  and  beautiful,  yet  it  was 
more  superfluous  and  voluptuous  than  the  substance  of 
the  realm  of  Scotland  might  bear  forth  or  sustain  :  never- 
theless, the  same  fashions  and  custom  of  costly  habili- 
ments, indifferently  used  by  all  estates,  excessive  ban- 
queting, and  sic  like,  remains  yet  to  these  days,  to  the 
great  hinder  and  poverty  of  the  whole  realm."  ^ 

These  observations,  as  Lesley  wrote  in  the  reign  of 
Queen  Mary,  are  perhaps  even  more  applicable  to  the 
consequences  of  James  the  Fifth's  second  marriage  with 
the  sprightly  Duchess-dow^ager  of  Longueville,  Mary  of 
Lorraine,  who  presided  over  the  court  of  Scotland  for 
nearly  two-and-twenty  years — first  as  Queen-consort,  and 
subsequently  as  Queen-Regent — during  wdiicli  period 
French  fashions  and  French  influence  gained  a  natural, 
but  ultimately  most  unpopular  ascendency.  The  leading 
events  of  the  stormy  period  of  Mary  of  Lorraine's  regency 
are  more  familiar  to  the  reader  than  her  early  history  and 

*  Historie  of  Scotland — James  Fyft. 
1* 


X  INTllODUCTORY     FILE  FACE. 

wedded  life,  which  are  the  more  agreeable  for  not  being 
mixed  up  with  the  religious  warfare  whi(ih  convulsed 
Scotland  during  her  widowhood.  Whatever  is  requisite 
to  be  related  on  the  latter  subject  will  be  told  as  briefly 
as  possible  in  due  order  of  chronology. 

Many  of  Mary  Stuart's  countrymen  who  are  now  pain- 
fully halting  between  two  opinions — an  internal  conviction 
that  she  was  rather  a  victim  than  a  criminal  "  rugging  at 
'heir  hearts,"  and  pleading  all  sorts  of  extenuating  cir- 
cumstances in  her  behalf  (which,  if  she  were  guilty  of  the 
crimes  imputed  to  her,  is  a  grave  offense  against  morali- 
ty),— would  rejoice  to  see  her  innocence  established,  if  it 
could  be  done  without  dispelling  that  veneration  for  John 
Knox  which  their  church,  to  the  great  hindrance  of  historic 
truth,  makes  no  less  an  article  of  historic  than  of  spiritual 
faith. 

As  it  is,  however,  contrary  not  only  to  our  principles, 
but  to  the  })lan  of  our  royal  biographies,  to  convert  histori- 
cal characters  and  events  into  pegs  whereon  to  hang  party 
questions,  especially  those  involving  theological  diflerences, 
which  it  is  the  peculiar  province  of  ecclesiastical  writers 
to  discuss,  we  will  endeavor  to  keep  John  Knox  as  much 
in  the  background  as  he  will  allow  us.  After  all,  his 
testimony  regarding  Mary  amounts  to  nothing  beyond 
harsh  words,  which,  however  they  may  have  biased  the 
minds  of  men,  have  no  real  eftect  as  matter  of  evidence. 
As  members  of  the  Reformed  Church,  we  regard  him  as  a 
great  and  honest  instrument  in  the  overthrow  of  the 
Church  of  Rome  in  Scotland.  Intent  on  the  mighty  work 
in  which  he  was  engaged,  John  Knox,  like  Jehu  the  son 
of  Nimshi,  drove  furiously — his  zeal  carried  him  in  many 
things  too  far ;  in  fact  it  intoxicated  his  reason,  by  caus- 
ing him  to  see  through  a  distorted  lens  every  thing  done 
by  Mary  Stuart,  the  daughter  of  his  ancient  adversary, 
Mary  of  Lorraine. 

Since  the  publication  of  those  valuable  national  works, 


INTliODUCTORY     PREFACE.  XI 

Tytler's  History  of  Scotland,  and  the  Life  of  Mary 
Stuart  by  Henry  Grlassford  Bell,  Esq.,  a  vast  body  of  her 
letters  and  other  cotemporary  documents  has  been  brought 
to  light  by  the  indefatigable  research  of  Prince  LabanofF, 
the  learned  contributors  to  the  Maitland  and  Bannatyne 
Club  Books,  and  other  generous  laborers  in  the  cause  of 
historic  truth,  which  supply  matter  for  a  more  important 
biography  of  this  Princess  than  could  possibly  have  been 
written  before  the  discovery  of  these  papers.  These  collec- 
tions, although  printed,  are,  with  very  few  exceptions, 
inaccessible  to  the  public  ;  and  even  if  the  great  expense 
attending  the  purchase  of  such  as  are  not  confined  to 
private  circulation  did  not  place  them  out  of  the  reach  of 
general  readers,  they  would  be  unintelligible  to  readers 
unaccustomed  to  the  old  French  and  obsolete  Scotch 
orthography.  In  addition  to  these,  I  have  been  favored 
with  access  to  the  charter-chests  of  many  of  the  historical 
families  of  Scotland,  and  aided  by  that  zealous  and  liberal- 
minded  documentarian,  Alexander  Macdonald,  Esq.,  of 
the  Register  House,  Edinburgh,  with  the  communication 
of  excerpts  from  the  Royal  Exchequer  Records  of  Scotland, 
and  curious  items  of  the  Privy  Purse  expenses  of  the 
Queens  of  Scotland  ;  besides  several  inedited  letters  of 
Queen  Mary,  discovered  by  himself,  which  had  escaped 
the  research  of  Prince  Labanoff.  An  especial  meed  of 
thanks  is  due  to  John  Riddell,  Esq.,  of  the  Faculty  of 
Advocates,  for  various  important  additions  to  my  collec- 
tions illustrative  of  the  personal  history  of  the  Scottish 
Queens,  both  in  the  present  series  and  the  medieval. 

I  have  been  also  indebted  to  David  Laing,  Esq.,  the 
learned  librarian  of  the  Signet  Library,  for  much  friendly 
attention  and  information,  and  the  loan  of  valuable  docu- 
mentary works.  Nor  must  I  omit  to  mention  my  obliga- 
tions to  Frederick  Devon,  Esq.,  of  the  Chapter  House, 
Westminster,  and  Henry  Sharpe,  Esq.,  brother  of  my 
lamented  friend,  Sir   Cuthbert  Sharpe.     Above  all,  I  beg 


Xll  IN  TROD  UC  TO  11  Y     rilEFACE- 

to  express  my  grateful  sense  of  the  courtesy  of  the  Honor- 
able John  Stuart,  in  favoring  me  with  the  use  of  Mary's 
secret  correspondence,  recently  discovered  in  the  family 
archives  of  the  House  of  Moray.  Were  I  to  specify  all 
the  honored  names  of  the  learned  noble,  and  the  noble 
learned,  the  good,  the  generous-minded,  and  the  true,  who 
have  kindly  labored  to  smooth  the  difiiculties  of  this 
arduous  undertaking,  by  opening  every  source  of  informa- 
tion, both  national  and  private,  and  strewing  an  otherwise 
rugged  path  with  flowers,  not  only  would  the  time  fail 
me,  but  volumes  would  be  requisite  to  express  my  ap- 
preciation of  the  gratifying  attentions  and  affectionate 
hospitalities  I  have  received  in  Scotland. 

The  base  misrepresentation  of  the  Scottish  character 
which  pervaded  the  coarse  literature  of  the  eighteenth 
century  in  England,  and  extended  its  pernicious  influence 
through  all  classes  of  society,  was  not  merely  symptomatic 
of  the  bad  taste  and  blunted  moral  perceptions  of  that 
soul-degrading  period — it  was  one  of  the  successful  organs 
of  party  malice,  neither  more  nor  less  than  the  reptile  tail 
of  the  hydra  of  falsehood,  which  reared  its  hundred  heads 
against  the  Royal  House  of  Stuart,  and  established  the 
most  palpable  calumnies  by  the  hardihood  of  assertion. 

The  pen  is  a  small  instrument,  but  it  is  a  lever  capable 
of  overturning  thrones.  It  is  among  the  pains  and  penal- 
ties of  Royalty  to  experience  the  fickleness  of  public  favor, 
and  to  be  occasionally  borne  down  by  an  unmerited  loat' 
of  obloquy,  of  which  the  pen  of  some  incendiary  writer 
has  been  the  exciting  cause ;  but  that  a  whole  nation 
should  have  been  brought  to  discredit  by  slanderou:« 
tongues  and  witless  pens,  is  a  marvel  and  a  mystery  no 
less  strange  than  true. 

As  long  as  Scotland,  in  consequence  of  bad  roads  and 
tedious  traveling,  remained  a  sort  of  terra  incognita, 
vulgar  prejudice  prevailed  among  the  ignorant  and  narrow- 
minded  portion  of  society  in  England  ;  but  Scotland  only 


INTRODUCTORY     PREFACE.  XIU 

required  to  be  seen  to  be  appreciated.  Strong  in  native 
talent,  rich  in  native  worth,  valiant,  persevering,  and 
wise,  her  sons  have  been  ever  foremost  in  the  field  of 
honorable  enterprise,  whether  in  deeds  of  arms,  science, 
jurisprudence,  or  the  industrial  arts  of  peaceful  life.  In 
poetry,  music,  and  song,  she  has  certainly  never  been 
surpassed.  It  was,  however,  reserved  for  the  genius  of 
Sir  Walter  Scott  to  draw  English  hearts  and  English  gold 
to  Scotland,  and  to  knit  those  bonds  of  brotherly  regard 
which  no  act  of  legislature  could  do.  His  graphic  pic- 
tures of  Scotland  and  the  Scotch  acted  like  a  spell  of 
enchantment  on  the  imaginations  of  the  English.  Those 
who  were  able  to  indulge  the  enthusiastic  feelings  which 
his  writings  had  excited,  crossed  the  Border,  rushed  into 
Highland  glens,  scaled  Highland  hills,  congregated  at 
Scotch  hostelries,  peeped  into  Scotch  cottages,  were  invited 
to  partake  of  Scotch  hospitality — and  found,  themselves  in 
a  land  flowing  with  milk  and  honey,  not  merely  in  its 
festive  character,  but  in  its  kindliness  to  strangers,  which 
is  the  glory  of  all  lands. 

Yet  among  the  numerous  visitors  whom  the  sight-seeing 
instincts  of  this  age  of  locomotion  have  rendered  familiar 
with  the  ancient  seats  of  Scottish  regality,  how  few  know 
any  thing  about  the  Queens  who  once  held  their  courts 
within  the  now  deserted  walls  of  Dunfermline,  Falkland, 
Linlithgow,  and  Stirling  ! — gems  which,  even  in  their 
desolation,  are  surviving  monuments  of  the  graceful  tastes 
of  their  founders,  and  incline  the  musing  antiquary,  who 
realizes  in  fancy  for  a  moment  their  pristine  glory,  to 
smite  his  breast  and  exclaim  "  Ichabod  I"  With  the 
exception  of  Windsor  Castle,  England  has  certainly  no 
vestige  of  palatial  architecture  which  may  compare  with 
the  royal  homes  of  Scotland,  of  whose  former  tenants  a 
few  particulars  may  be  no  less  acceptable  to  the  sons  and 
daughters  of  the  land,  than  to  the  southern  stranger  who 
visits  them. 


XIV  INTRODUCTORY     PREFACE. 

The  Maiden  Castle,  sitting  enthroned  on  her  dun  rock, 
the  Acropolis  of  Edinburgh,  at  once  a  rehc  and  a  witness 
of  the  immutable  Past,  is  full  of  memories  of  eventful 
scenes  connected  with  Queens  whose  hearts  would  have 
leaped  with  exultation  could  their  eyes  have  looked  on 
such  a  vision  of  national  prosperity  as  the  bright  New 
Town,  with  its  gay  streets,  and  shops  full  of  costly  mer- 
chandise ;  its  spacious  squares,  crescents,  and  noble  public 
buildings  rising  on  the  outer  ballium  of  that  grim  fortress 
whose  base  is  now  surrounded  by  green  flowery  gardens, 
for  the  joyance  of  a  peace-loving  generation.  Mons  Meg 
and  her  brethren  have  lost  their  vocation  throuo^h  the 
amended  temper  of  the  times,  and  hold  sinecure  posts  in 
silence — their  destructive  thunders  being  superseded  by 
the  din  of  the  railway  trains  bringing  hourly  freights  of 
wealth  and  wisdom  to  the  good  town  of  Edinburgh  and 
its  inhabitants. 

England  and  Scotland  are  now  one,  not  merely  by  the 
blending  of  the  regal  houses  of  Plantagenet,  Bruce,  Tudor, 
and  Stuart  in  the  person  of  James  VI.,  and  his  accession 
to  the  throne  of  G-reat  Britain  in  1603,  and  the  parlia- 
mentary act  of  consolidation  in  1707,  then  miscalled  the 
Union  ;  but  truly  and  effectually  by  friendship,  based  on 
mutual  esteem,  which  has  been  cemented  between  the 
true  hearts  of  the  north  and  south  in  the  present  century. 
Under  these  auspicious  circumstances,  the  Lives  of  the 
Queens  of  Scotland  ought  not  to  be  less  interesting  to 
English,  than  those  of  the  Queens  of  England  have  proved 
to  Scotch  readers. 

Each  of  the  Lives  in  the  present  series  of  royal  biog- 
raphies forms  a  distinct  original  narrative  of  individual 
yet  general  interest,  illustrative  of  the  course  of  civiliza- 
tion, the  progress  of  the  arts,  and  the  costume  of  the 
periods  to  which  they  belong,  calculated  to  lend  a  charm 
to  the  study  of  history,  which,  when  truthfully  told  and 


INTRODUCTORY     PREFACE.  XV 

philosophically  considered,  is  the  noblest  school  of  ethics 
replete  with  moral  teaching. 

Many  original  royal  letters  will  be  embodied  in  these 
volumes,  with  facts  and  anecdotes  carefully  verified. 
Local  traditions,  not  unworthy  of  attention,  have  been 
gathered  in  the  desolate  palaces  and  historic  sites  where 
every  peasant  is  an  oral  chronicler,  full  of  spirit-stirring 
recollections  of  the  past.  These  are  occasionally  connected 
with  themes  which  were  the  fountains  whence  Sir  Walter 
Scott  drew  his  inspiration  for  the  chivalric  poetry  and 
romance  which  has  rendered  Scotland  classic  ground. 
The  tastes  of  those  who  were  the  risina^  o-eneration  when 
the  Waverley  romances  were  the  absorbing  theme  of 
interest  in  the  literary  w^orld,  have  become  matured. 
They  require  to  have  history  rendered  as  agreeable  without 
the  mixture  of  fiction  as  with  it ;  they  desire  to  have  it 
so  written,  without  sacrificing  truth  to  fastidiousness,  that 
they  may  read  it  with  their  children,  and  that  the  whole 
family  party  shall  be  eager  to  resume  the  book  when 
they  gather  round  the  work-table  during  the  long  winter 
evenings. 

Authors  who  feel  as  they  ought  to  feel,  should  rejoice 
in  seeing  their  productions  capable  of  imparting  pleasure 
to  the  simple  as  well  as  the  refined ;  for  a  book  which 
pleases  only  one  grade  of  society  may  be  fashionable,  but 
can  not  be  called  popular.  That  which  interests  peasants 
as  well  as  peers,  and  is  read  with  equal  zest  by  children 
and  parents,  and  is  often  seen  in  the  hands  of  the  opera- 
tive classes,  speaks  to  the  heart  in  a  language  intelligible 
to  a  widely-extended  circle  of  humanity,  has  written  its 
own  review,  and  needs  no  other. 

Edinburgh,  October  23,  1850. 


MARGARET    TUDOR. 


THE 


QTJEEIS  or  SCOTLAND. 


MARGARET    TUDOR 


CHAPTER  I. 

SUMMARY. 

Margaret  Tudor,  the  eldest  daughter  of  Henry  VII.  and  Elizabeth  of  York— Born  at  Wost- 
minster — Baptized  at  St.  Margaret's  church — Childhood  and  education,  &c. — Dances  at 
her  brother  Arthur's  bridal— Is  legatee  to  his  personal  property— Margaret  is  betrothed 
at  Richmond  ])alace  to  James  IV. — Loses  her  mother  Queon  Elizabeth — Previous  life  of 
James  IV.— Margaret  sets  out  with  Henry  VII.  for  the  north— Is  taken  to  her  grand- 
mother's castle  of  Colleweston — Receives  publicly  her  father's  and  her  grandmother's 
blessing — Her  father  gives  her  admissal — His  written  benediction  on  her  therein — She 
bids  him  farewell  in  the  hall  at  Colleweston — Her  equipage  and  attendance— Her  mag- 
nificent progress  toward  Scotland — Her  grand  entry  of  York — Remarkable  meeting 
with  the  Earl  of  Northumberland— Her  arrival  at  Durham,  at  Newcastle,  at  Alnwick— 
Kills  a  buck  there  with  her  crossbow — Her  sojourn  and  entertainment  at  Berwick — Her 
preparations  for  entering  Scotland — Issues  through  the  north  gate  of  Berwick — Is  es- 
corted by  a  feudal  army  of  English  Borderers — Her  first  morning's  journey  in  Scotland — 
Is  received  as  Queen-Consort  by  a  noble  escort  sent  by  James  IV. — Enters  the  Pavilion 
of  Recreation  at  Lammermuir — The  English  Border  chivalry  defiles  before  her,  making 
their  devoir  of  adieu — She  proceeds  to  Fast  castle — Sleeps  there  the  first  night  in  Scot- 
land— Roads  pioneered  before  her — Received  by  the  nmis  of  Haddington  on  the  second 
night — Arrives  at  Dalkeith  castle — Received  in  state  by  Lady  Morton — The  King's  ap- 
proach unexpectedly  aunomiced. 

The  national  enmity  which  had,  from  the  earliest  times,  sub- 
sisted occasionally  between  the  realms  of  England  and  Scot- 
land, reached  an  intolerable  degree  of  rancor  in  the  fifteenth 
century. 

For  two  hundred  years,  the  monarchs  of  England  had  left  no 
attempt  untried  to  subvert  the  independence  of  Scotland,  labor- 
ing vehemently  to  destroy  it  either  by  force  or  fraud.  Force  had 
hitherto  proved  unavailing.  If  Edward  I.  had  for  a  short  time 
caused  the  whole  island  to  own  him  as  sovereign,  yet  the  warhke 
porth  broke  away  as  soon  as  her  bleeding  wounds  were  stanched, 

ygh.  I.— A 


4.  BIARGARET     TUDOR. 

and  returning'  seasons  had  repaired  the  destruction  perpetrated  by 
the  southern  invader.  All  these  bitter  aggressions  Scotland  took 
care  to  retaliate  when  the  hour  of  England's  weakness  came.  A 
terrible  thorn  did  the  vengeance  of"  the  northern  realm  prove  in 
the  side  of  her  neighbor,  when  struggling  in  the  agonies  of  the 
White  and  Red  Rose  succession  Avars  I 

But  neighbors,  whether  they  be  private  individuals  or  mighty 
nations,  can  not  systematically  perpetrate  long  courses  of  mutual 
injuries  without  at  times  becoming  aware  that  such  employment 
is  singularly  unprofitable.  Henry  Vll.  had  the  wisdom  to  draw 
this  inference  :  he  had,  from  an  early  period  of  his  reign,  projected 
the  policy  of  making  the  King  of  Scotland  his  friend  and  ally,  by 
giving  him  the  hand  of  his  eldest  daughter,  who,  according  to 
the  figurative  language  of  his  councillors,  "would  prove  the  dove 
which  was  to  bring  to  the  island-kmgdoms  the  blessings  of  per- 
manent peace." 

But  the  royal  family  of  Tudor  was  not  a  nest  from  which  doves 
ever  sprang.  It  is  true  that  Margaret  Tudor  became  the  mother 
of  the  line  which,  succeeding  to  the  Britannic  empire,  peaceably 
effected  by  right  the  good  that  might  could  never  accomplish. 
Yet  Margaret's  personal  conduct  brought  no  elements  of  peace  ; 
and  while  she  ruled  as  Q.ueen  Regent  of  the  north,  her  character 
reflected,  as  in  a  dim  and  turbid  mirror,  a  family  resemblance  of 
the  caprices  and  passions  of  her  powerful  brother  Henry  VHI., 
the  sovereign  of  the  south. 

Margaret  was  born  Princess-Royal  of  England  at  Westminster 
Palace,  November  29,  1489,  being  the  eldest  daughter  of  Eliza- 
beth of  York  and  Henry  YH.  A  few  hours  afterward  the  royal 
babe  made  her  first  appearance  in  public  life,  her  father  and  his 
mother  Margaret,  Countess  of  Richmond,  having  resolved  that 
her  baptism  should  be  celebrated  on  St.  Andrew's  day — the  pa- 
tron saint  of  Scotland,  which  occurs  November  30.^  As  the 
Countess  of  Richmond,  grandfather  and  godmother  to  the  infant, 
left  an  elaborate  treatise  of  her  own  writing  on  royal  ceremonials, 
no  doubt  can  exist  but  that  the  baptism  was  conducted  according 
to  the  ancient  customs  of  the  monarchs  of  England. 

The  Q,ueen's  chamber,  where  Margaret  Tudor  drew  her  first 
breath,  was  in  immediate  vicinity  to  the  Painted  Chamber,  or  St. 
Edward's  Chamber,^  subsequently  used  as  the  hall  where  the 
1  Speed's  Chronicle.  ^  Smith's  Westminster,  4to.  p.  70. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  3 

House  of  Commons  deliberated.  Some  ancient  windows,  la^rly 
to  be  seen  near  those  belonging  to  the  well-known  Painted  Cham- 
ber, pertained  to  the  apartments  of  our  Glueens  at  Westminster 
Palace. 

The  little  Princess  was  borne  in  royal  pomp  from  this  chamber 
in  Westminster  Palace  '  by  the  Lady  Berkeley,  assisted  by  the 
Earls  of  Arundel  and  Shrewsbury.  She  was  brought  by  them 
into  the  Whitehall,^  where  the  procession  formed  ;  for  the  chris- 
tening was  to  take  place  in  the  church  near  Westminster  Abbey, 
dedicated  to  St.  Margaret,  Glueen  of  Scotland — who  was,  at  the 
same  time,  patroness  and  name-saint  of  her  young  descendant — 
Henry  VII.  and  his  sagacious  mother  having  arranged  all  these 
coincidences  for  the  purpose  of  conciliating  the  national  predilec- 
tions of  the  Scotch. 

The  sacred  silver  font  was  brought  from  Canterbury  Cathe- 
dral, as  usual  for  the  baptism  of  the  children  of  the  Kings  of 
England,  and  set  up  in  the  porch  of  St.  Margaret's  Church,  the 
porch  itself  being  richly  hung  with  tapestry,  and  the  ceiling  with 
fine  embroidery.^  Here  the  Bishop  of  Ely,  in  full  pontificals, 
waited  the  arrival  of  the  procession,  which  took  its  way  through 
the  gate  in  the  wall  of  the  New  Palace  Yard,  leading  direct  to 
St.  Margaret's  Church.*  The  infant  Princess  was  attended  by 
her  eldest  aunt  the  Lady  Anne  of  York,  who  bore  the  white 
chrisom  ;  Lord  Wells,  the  husband  of  the  Princess  Cecily  of  York, 
carried  the  salt  in  a  grand  gold  salt-cellar — salt  being  always 
used  at  the  Roman  Catholic  baptisms  ;  a  great  silver  chandelier 
full  of  lights  was  borne  before  Lord  Wells  ;  wax-tapers,  unlighted, 
were  carried  on  all  sides  by  the  nobility  and  officers  of  the  royal 
household.  Margaret,  Countess  of  Richmond,  gave  the  Princess 
her  name  ;  the  Duchess  of  jSTorfolk,  "  daughter  to  the  good  Tal- 
bot," says  our  authority,^  was  the  other  godmother  ;  and  Dr. 
Morton,  Chancellor  of  England  and  Archbishop  of  Canterbury 
was  godfather. 

The  new-born  infant  was  evidently  baptized  by  immersion,  not- 
withstanding the  cold  usual  to  our  climate  at  the  last  day  of 
November,  for  the  words  occur — "  When  the  babe  was  put  into 

^  Leland's  Collection.  "^  The  former  House  of  Lords. 

^  Herald's  Journal  in  Leland's  CoUeetion. 

*  Antiquities  of  Westminster,  J.  T.  Smith. 

*  Herald's  Journal,  Leland  Collection. 


4  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

the  font,  all  the  tapers  were  lighted."  ^  Indeed,  the  illuminated 
MSS.j  both  of  England  and  France,  always  represented  royal 
infants  swimming  in  the  fonts,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  Beauchamp 
MSS.,  and  that  of  St.  Denis,  representing  severally  the  baptisms 
of  Henry  VI.  and  Charles  VI.  of  France. 

When  the  ceremonial  was  over,  the  infant  Princess-Royal  was 
borne  back  to  Westminster  Palace  in  solemn  procession.  She 
was  carried  under  a  canopy  supported  by  four  bold  bannerets, 
who  had  won  their  pennons  and  spurs  at  Bosworth  Field.  These 
gentlemen  were  Sir  Gilbert  Talbot,  Sir  Edward  Stanley,  Sir  James 
Blount,  and  Sir  John  Savage.  Before  the  Princess-Royal  were 
carried  her  christening  presents,  with  trumpets  sounding  merrily. 
The  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  had  presented  his  god-daughter 
with  a  beautiful  gold  a^penoir,  set  with  precious  stones,  to  be 
used  in  sprinkling  sweet  waters.  The  Viscount  Wells  carried  a 
silver  chest  or  box  heaped  with  gold  coins,  the  gift  of  the  child's 
grand-dame  and  sponsor,  the  Countess  Margaret. 

Margaret  was  nursed  at  her  mother's  favorite  palace  of  Shene 
(recently  named  Richmond  by  Plenry  VII.).  Lady  Guildford, 
wife  of  Sir  Richard  Guildford,  one  of  the  knights  of  the  royal 
household,  was  her  lady-mistress,  or  personal  governess.  Her 
nurse,  a  Welshwoman,  is  designated  by  the  King,  in  the  treas- 
ury order  for  receipt  of  her  wages,  as  "  our  beloved  Alice  Davy,"  * 
who  received  ten  pounds  per  annum.  The  assistants  in  the  nur- 
sery, being  only  rockers,  were  not  complimented  as  the  "  king's 
dearly  beloved  ;"  their  names  were  Anne  Mayland  and  Margaret 
Troughton.  They  received  each  only  £3  3s.  'del.  per  annum. 
Alice  Bywymble,  the  day-ivife,  another  Welshwoman,  had  the 
same  salary.  There  is  a  treasury  order  extant,  given  under  the 
privy-seal  at  Greenwich  Palace,  when  the  Princess  was  about 
three  years  old,  which  expressly  specifies  that  the  above  atten- 
dants of  her  nursery  were  to  have  no  deductions  from  their  wages 
imposed  on  them  by  those  officers  who  disbursed  the  order. 

In  her  early  infancy,  overtures  were  made  for  the  betrothal  of 
the  English  Princess-Royal  with  James  IV.  of  Scotland,  a  prince 
who  was  grown  up  to  man's  estate  before  she  was  born, — a  dis- 
crepancy of  age  which  did  not  promise  her  much  chance  of  being 
Glueen  of  Scotland,  notwithstanding  all  the  compliments  paid  to 

'  Antiquities  of  Westminster,  J.  T.  Smith. 

^  See  Henry  Ellis's  Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  172,  2d  series. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  O 

the  Scottish  saints  by  her  baptism  at  St.  Margaret's  Church,  on 
St.  Andrew's  day.  James  IV.,  being  withal  absorbed  in  passion- 
ate love  for  a  lady  of  his  own  age,  merely  encouraged  the  over- 
ture in  order  to  prevent  the  gainsaying  of  his  inclination ;  for 
which  purpose  he  flattered  the  ardent  wishes  of  his  councillors 
that  he  should  ultimately  form  a  matrimonial  alliance  with  the 
infant  of  his  powerful  southern  neighbor.^ 

Margaret  of  Richmond,  who  superintended  the  bringing  up  of 
her  granddaughter  and  godchild,  was  one  of  the  most  learned 
women  in  Europe,  according  to  the  acquirements  of  the  •cloister. 
Better  far,  she  could  write  pleasant  letters,  expressing  clearly  what 
she  meant  to  say — sometimes  enlivened  with  strokes  of  naive 
humor,  which  speak  of  a  cheerful  and  innocent  heart ;  her  or- 
thography not  illiterate,  her  writing  is  fair  and  even  legible,  when 
it  is  considered  that  she  wrote  the  running-hand  of  the  old  Eng- 
lish black  character. 

None  of  these  attainments  were  imparted  to  her  young  name- 
child  Margaret,  who,  though  brought  up  surrounded  by  the  awak- 
ening renaissance  or  era  of  the  new  birth  of  classical  lone,  was 
neither  a  learned  nor  an  educated  princess.  Some  one,  either 
father  or  granddame,  must  have  indulged  her  ruinously,  and  per- 
mitted the  willfulness  of  caprice  and  petulance  to  take  root  in  her 
young  heart.  She  was  reared  with  her  two  brothers,  Arthur  and 
Henry,  the  first  older,  the  latter  younger  than  herself  The  Prin- 
ces were  educated  with  all  the  learning  of  the  times,  but  Mar- 
garet imbibed  none  from  their  intercourse  and  conversation. 

Her  portrait  was  painted  more  than  once  by  Mabuse,  the  pre- 
cursor of  Holbein,  when  he  visited  the  court  of  Henry  VII.  in 
search  of  patronage.  Lord  Lindsay,  who  has  devoted  much  learn- 
ing and  research  to  the  state  of  the  arts,  considers  that  Mabuse 
painted  his  first  group  of  Heniy  VII. 's  children  in  the  year  1596 
or  1597.^^  At  that  period,  Margaret  was  seven  or  eight  years 
of  age. 

1  Buchanan,  vol.  xi.  p.  110.  The  dispensation  for  the  wedlock  of  James 
and  Margaret  is  dated  Aug.  5,  1500.     Rymer's  Foedera. 

^  Lord  Lindsay's  Christian  Art,  vol.  iii.  p.  348.  His  Lordship  informs 
us  that  Mabuse  was  a  profligate  character,  who  hved  long  enough  to  be  the 
subject  of  a  curious  anecdote.  Many  years  afterward,  when  the  Emperor 
Charles  V.  had  arrived  at  man's  estate,  that  sovereign  was  to  pay  a  visit  to 
the  Marquis  of  Vanderveren,  in  whose  service  Mabuse  then  Avas.  The  Mar- 
quis chose  to  array  all  his  retainers  in  white  damask.    The  painter  request- 


b  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

When  Sir  Thomas  More,  by  the  permission  of  Henry  VII.,  took 
the  learned  Erasmus  to  visit  the  royal  children  at  Shene,  he  men- 
tions seeing  Margaret  with  her  brothers  Henry  and  Edmund, 
saying  that  she  was  then  a  girl  about  eleven  years  old.  He  gives 
no  praises  to  her  beauty  ;  indeed,  at  that  period,  her  portrait  by 
Mabuse,  painted  in  the  same  piece  with  her  brothers  Henry  and 
Edmund,  presents  the  appearance  of  a  little  prim  old  woman, 
rather  than  the  soft  features  of  childhood.  The  costume  is  very 
plain  and  homely — probably  it  might  be  the  habit  belonging  to 
the  Carthusian  Convent  at  Shene.  All  her  bright  hair  is  con- 
cealed, her  head  being  covered  with  a  hood,  similar  in  form  to 
those  seen  at  the  present  day  worn  by  female  mourners  following 
the  pedestrian  funerals  of  the  poor  through  the  crowded  streets  of 
London.  Mabuse  painted  many  copies  of  the  portraits  of  the 
royal  children  :  one  is  familiar  to  the  public,  in  the  long  gallery 
at  Hampton  Court.  The  three  children  look  grave,  and  even 
grim,  which  was  the  fault  of  the  hard  literal  pencil  of  Mabuse 
and  his  fading  colors,  rather  than  the  hand  of  nature — for  the 
TudoD  royal  family  had  all  very  bright  complexions  ;  and  Mar- 
garet, although  not  remarkable  for  a  classical  outline  of  features, 
was  famed  for  lilies  and  roses,  and  a  profusion  of  glittering  hair.^ 
In  the  Hampton  Court  group,  her  little  brother  Edmund,  a  solemn- 
looking  baby  of  three  years  old,  has  his  head  covered  with  an 
infinity  of  pale  yellow  round  curls.  He  died  when  he  was  in  his 
fourth  year. 

Margaret  Tudor  learned  to  write  in  her  childhood,  or  rather  to 
trace  certain  square-looking  marks,  which  would  resemble  some 
of  the  Oriental  characters  if  they  had  more  regularity.  Her  or- 
thography was  guided  solely  by  the  sounds  she  uttered  ;  and 
these  prove  that  the  persons  who  formed  her  pronunciation  placed 
strong  aspirations  before  all  the  vowels.  She  played  on  the  lute, 
and  danced  actively.  Her  performance  of  a  quick  lively  dance, 
with  her  brother  Henry  as  a  partner,  at  the  festival  of  her  brother 

ed  to  have  his  allotment  of  damask  in  his  own  possession,  under  pretence  of 
devising  some  curious  or  quaint  costume.  The  rogue  bartered  it  at  the 
tavern  for  drink,  and  did,  indeed,  devise  a  curious  costume  for  himself, 
imitating  damask  on  white  paper.  The  trick  had  been  whispered  to  his 
master ;  and  the  Emperor,  who  could  not  help  admiring  the  ingenuity  of 
Mabuse,  made  him  approach  his  chair,  which  led  to  the  open  discovery  of 
his  imposition. 

*  See  her  description  by  Gavin  Douglas,  in  his  Palace  of  Honor, 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  / 

Artliur's  marriage  with  Katharine  of  Arragon,  was  admired  by 
the  whole  court. 

In  her  royal  mother's  Compotus,  or  diary  of  expenses,  the  pm'- 
chase  of  lutes  and  lute-strings,  and  fees  to  Giles  the  luter,  for 
teaching  Margaret,  occur  occasionally.  Thus,  the  ornamental 
part  was  not  neglected  in  the  education  of  the  young  Princess- 
Eoyal,  however  wofuUy  her  mind  was  left  vacant,  and  her  pas- 
sions uncontrolled.  Arthur,  Prince  of  Wales,  lavished  much  love 
and  indulgence  on  his  sister  Margaret,  who  was  nearest  to  him 
in  age  of  all  the  royal  family.  Even  when  he  married  Katha- 
rine of  Arragon,  and  retired  to  keep  court  at  Ludlow  Castle,  the 
absence  of  a  few  months  had  not  effaced  Margaret  from  his 
affections.  In  fact,  he  proved  how  much  dearer  the  sister  w^as 
than  his  bride,  by  bequeathing  to  her  all  his  personal  property, 
jewels,  plate,  and  even  his  best  robes. ^ 

The  death  of  Arthur,  Prince  of  Wales  (April  2,  1501),  made 
the  alliance  with  his  sister  a  matter  of  more  consequence  to  the 
Council  of  Scotland.  Margaret  was  now  heiress  to  the  heir- 
apparent,  her  next  brother  Henry,  whose  single  life  stood  between 
her  and  the  succession  to  the  fair  kingdom  of  South  Britaui  and 
its  dependencies.  Ideas  of  the  ultimate  consolidation  of  the  Bri- 
tannic empire,  by  means  of  her  descendants,  began  to  occur  to 
the  sagacious  brain  of  Henry  VII.  The  Scottish  Council  was  too 
urgent  with  their  King  to  secure  the  young  Princess,  for  the  good 
of  his  country,  to  leave  him  any  feasible  excuse  for  delaying  the 
solemn  affiancing,  or  marrying  her  by  proxy. 

After  much  diplomatic  negotiation  between  Henry  VII. 's  astute 
minister  Fox,  Bishop  of  Durham,  and  the  Earl  of  Bothwell,  the 
latter,  accompanied  by  the  Archbishop  of  Glasgow,  came  to  Lon- 
don, and  demanded  the  hand  of  the  Princess  Margaret.  The 
proposition  was  thankfully  accepted  by  Henry  VII.,  and  laid  be- 
fore his  Privy  Council,  at  which  debate  occurred  the  celebrated 
saying,  often  quoted  from  Lord  Bacon,  in  proof  of  the  far-sighted 

I  All  the  Scottish  historians  mention  this  circumstance — Buchanan,  vol. 
ij.  p.  112.  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie  quotes  documents  relating  to  it.  The 
English  historians  say,  the  disputed  legacy  was  left  by  Henry  VH.,  who,  in 
fact,  had  detained  it  in  his  possession  after  his  son's  death  ; — there  is  no  such 
notation  in  his  will ;  but  he  had  probably  ordered  Margaret's  legacy  to  be 
given  up  to  her  on  his  death-bed.  That  there  was  a  legacy  claimed  by  Mar- 
garet is  testified  beyond  dispute  by  Dr.  West's  dispatches. 


8  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

wi^dom  of  that  sovereign.  One  of  the  English  lords  present  hav- 
ing objected  that  "the  Princess  Margaret,  being  next  heir  to  her 
brother  Henry,  England  might  chance  to  become  a  province  to 
Scotland." 

"  No,"  replied  King  Henry,  "  the  smaller  will  ever  follow  the 
larger  kingdom."  ^ 

The  Scottish  annalists,  however,  do  not  dismiss  Henry  VH.'s 
speech  qnite  so  tersely,  but  add  the  historical  authority  on  which 
the  King  founded  his  apothegm. 

"Some  of  his  counsellors,"  says  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ross,^  "  did 
propound  certain  reasons  for  staying  of  that  marriage,  alledging 
that  it  might  happen  that  the  heritage  and  succession  of  the 
realm  of  England  might  fall  to  Margaret  his  eldest  daughter, 
and  to  her  successors  ;  and,  therefore,  it  seemed  best  she  should 
be  married  to  some  foreign  prince.  To  the  whilk,  the  King 
Henry  VH.  did  answer,  '  What  then,  if  such  things  did  happen 
(which  chance  God  forbid),  I  see  that  it  would  come  so  that  our 
realm  would  receive  no  damage  there-through  ;  for  in  that  case 
England  would  not  accress  to  Scotland,  but  Scotland  to  England, 
as  to  the  most  noble  head  of  the  whole  isle,  as  when  Normandy 
came  to  the  power  of  Englishmen,  our  forbears.'  And  so  the 
wisdom  of  the  King  was  commended,  and  the  lady  Margaret 
granted  to  the  King  of  Scotland." 

Margaret's  only  surviving  brother,  Henry,  Prince  of  Wales, 
did  not  view  the  possible  prospect  of  the  island  union  with  the 
complacency  of  his  sire.  Or  probably  his  worthless  tutor,  Skel- 
ton  (remarkable  for  his  virulent  abuse  of  the  Scotch),  had  filled 
his  young  mind  with  furious  antipathy  ;  for  the  passion  the  boy 
flew  into,  when  required  to  salute  Margaret  as  the  betrothed 
bride  of  James  IV.,  astonished  the  English  Court,  and  even  the 
foreign  envoys.  After  his  rage  had  had  its  course,  Henry  was 
afflicted  with  several  fits  of  ague — an  illness  oddly  enough  at- 
tributed by  Cardinal  Cajetan,  a  cotemporary  statesman  and 
author,  to  the  excessive  displeasure  of  the  Prince  at  his  sister 
Margaret's  wedlock  with  James  IV. ^ 

The  portion  and  settlement  of  Margaret  Tudor  were  arranged 

^  Bacon's  Life  of  Henry  VIT. 

^  Lesley's  History  of  Scotland,  Bannatyne  edition. 

^  Varillas  quotes  this  Vnt  of  court  gossip  from  Cardinal  Cajetan,  who  dates 
the  conclusion  of  the  Scotch  marriage  treaty  August,  1502. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  9 

during  the  autumn  of  1502.  The  young  dueen  was  to  be  put 
immediately  in  possession  of  the  castles  and  manors  which  con- 
stituted the  jointure-lands  of  the  Q,ueen  Consorts  of  Scotland,  to 
the  amount  of  £2000  per  annum ;  to  which  James  lY.  added  a 
pension  of  500  marks.  In  the  event  of  her  widowhood,  Mar- 
garet was  to  be  permitted  to  reside,  at  her  pleasure,  either  within 
or  without  the  bounds  of  Scotland.  Henry  VII.  gave  Margaret 
but  .£10,000,  which  was  to  be  paid  by  installments,  in  three  years 
— a  dowry  little  more  than  half  as  much  as  that  which  Alexan- 
der III.  gave  with  his  daughter  Margaret  to  Haco,  King  of  Nor- 
way, in  the  thirteenth  century.^ 

It  was  stipulated  that  Henry  VII.  should  not  be  obliged  to 
send  his  daughter  to  Scotland  before  September  1,  1503,  She 
was  given  liberty,  by  her  marriage  articles,  to  keep  twenty-four 
English  servants,  besides  the  Scottish  attendants^  which  her  lord 
the  King  might  think  requisite  for  her  rank. 

The  health  of  the  Clueen  of  England,  Ehzabeth  of  York,  had 
been  infirm  since  the  death  of  her  son  Arthur  ;  her  situation  was 
delicate,  and  the  time  drev/  on  v/hen  she  was  about  to  take  her 
chamber  in  the  Tower  of  London,  previously  to  her  seventh  ac- 
couchement. The  marriage  of  the  Princess  Margaret,  therefore, 
was  not  celebrated  according  to  ancient  custom,  amid  the  assem- 
bled multitudes  of  London  and  Westminster  ;  but  in  the  retirement 
of  her  royal  mother's  apartments  at  Richmond  Palace.  John 
Young,  Somerset  Herald,  a  zealous  and  pains-taking  chronicler 
of  all  occurrences  relating  to  the  same,  assisted  at  the  ceremonial  : 
and  from  his  narrative  the  following  information  is  drawn. ^ 

"  At  the  King's  right  royal  manor  of  Richmond,  on  St.  Paul's 

1  An  important  reason  connected  with  the  constitutional  history  of 
England  may  be  given  in  explanation  of  the  scanty  nature  of  Margaret's 
dowry,  which  was,  in  fact,  supplied  from  the  private  resources  of  the  King 
her  father,  that  monarch  having  been  disappointed  of  the  supply  which  it  was 
customary  for  parliament  to  grant  in  aid  of  the  marriage  of  a  Princess- Royal. 
The  requisition  of  a  subsidy  for  this  purpose  had  been  confidently  made  by 
King  Henry,  but  was  opposed  by  Sir  Thomas  More,  then  a  beardless  strip- 
ling, m  a  speech  of  great  power  and  eloquence,  and,  for  the  first  time  in 
that  reign,  the  crown  was  thrown  mto  a  minority  on  the  matter  of  finance, 
for  the  subs^idy  was  refused,  to  the  infinite  surprise  and  anger  of  the  sov- 
ereign.— (Records  of  Parliament,  Life  of  Sir  Thomas  More.) 

^  Tytler's  History  of  Scotland,  vol.  v.  p.  11. 

^  Printed  in  the  Appendix  of  Leland's  Collectanea,  vol.  iv.  p.  258,  from 
a  MS.  once  in  possession  of  Anstis  Garter-King-at-arms. 

A* 


10  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

day,  January  24,  1502-3,  were  performed  the  fiancels  of  the 
right  high  and  mighty  Prince,  James  IV.,  King  of  Scots,  and 
Margaret,  eldest  daughter  of  our  sovereign  lord  Henry  VII.,  King 
of  England  and  France,  and  Lord  of  Ireland,  as  ensueth — 

"  The  King,  the  Q,ueen,  and  all  their  noble  children,  having 
heard  mass,  and  a  notable  sermon  preached  by  Richard  Fitz- 
james,  Bishop  of  Chichester,  the  Q,ueen,  after  service,  received 
the  whole  illustrious  company  in  her  great  chamber.  She  was 
attended  by  her  daughter  the  Princess  Margaret,  and  by  the  little 
Lady  Mary,  her  youngest  child  ;  likewise  by  her  own  sister,  the 
Lady  Katharine  of  Devonshire,  and  most  of  the  great  ladies  of 
the  court," 

It  is  remarkable  that  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  notices 
that  the  Lady  Katharine  Gordon,  widow  of  Perkin  Warbeck, 
was  in  the  Glueen's  train  ;  and,  on  account  of  her  nearness  of 
kin  both  to  the  Kings  of  England  and  Scotland,  took  rank  next 
to  the  royal  family,  although  Lady  Braye,  the  wife  of  the  prime 
minister,  was  present. 

"  The  King  was  attended  by  his  son  Prince  Henry,  Don  Peter 
the  Pope's  orator,  and  the  ambassadors  of  Spain  and  Venice  ; 
the  Archbishops  of  Canterbury  and  York,  with  four  other  bishops ; 
likewise  the  members  of  the  Privy  Council,  and  a  great  number 
of  the  nobles  of  England.  Then  were  introduced  Patrick  Hep- 
burn, the  Earl  of  Bothwell,  who  acted  as  proxy  for  the  King  of 
Scotland  his  sovereign  ;  and  the  other  procurators  for  the  mar- 
riage, being  the  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  and  the  elect  Bishop  of 
Murray.^ 

"  Then  the  Earl  of  Surrey  stood  forth,  and  with  very  good 
manner,  right  seriously  declared  the  cause  of  that  fair  assembly 
being  met  together.  Dr.  Uouthall,  King  Henry  VII. 's  Secretary, 
proceeded  to  read  the  Scottish  Commission.  A  canon  of  Glas- 
gow, Mr.  David  Cunningham,  followed,  by  reading  aloud  the 
Pope's  dispensation  '  for  consanguinity,  affinity,  and  nonage.'  "  "^ 

The  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  commenced  the  usual  questions, 
by  demanding  solemnly  of  King  Henry  VII. — 

"Does  your  Grace  know  any  impediment  on  your  part  to  this 
wedlock,  other  than  is  here  dispensed  withal?" 

The  King  assured  him  that  he  did  not. 

"  Does  your  Grace  know  of  any  impediments  and  objections, 

^  Somerset  Herald's  Journal.     Leland,  vol  iv.  ^  Ibid 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  11 

any  other  than  the  Pope  has  here  dispensed  with?"  asked  the 
Scottish  Archbishop  of  Q,ueen  EUzabeth,  mother  of  the  bride. 

The  Q,ueen  declared  she  knew  of  none  other.  The  bride  her- 
self, the  Lady  Margaret,  was  then  solemnly  adjured  relative  to 
her  knowledge  of  any  objections  to  her  marriage  with  the  King 
of  Scots.  She  gave  a  satisfactory  answer.  Henrj^  the  VII.  in 
his  turn  put  the  same  kind  of  questions  to  the  Archbishop  of 
Glasgow,  regarding  the  pre-engagements  of  James  lY.,  and  not 
without  reason,  considering  that  the  archives  of  his  own  realm 
could  bear  witness  that  the  royal  wooer  had  already  been  half 
married,  both  to  Margaret's  cousin,  Anne  of  Suffolk,  and  to  her 
aunt.  Lady  Cecilia  Plantagenet. 

Whether  the  report  had  reached  the  high  contracting  parties, 
that  James  of  Scotland  was  at  that  very  time  wholly  married  to 
the  fair  Margaret  Drummond  of  Stobshall,  our  herald  says  not ; 
but  proceeds  to  declare  that  the  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  solemnly 
answered  in  his  royal  master's  name  that  he  was  free  and  dis- 
engaged. 

King  Henry  next  demanded  of  the  Bishop  of  Murray,  whether 
"  it  was  indeed  the  very  v/ill,  mind,  and  full  intent  of  King 
James,  that  Earl  Bothwell  should  in  his  name  assure  the  Prin- 
cess Margaret."      The  Bishop  answered  "  that  it  was  so." 

Then  the  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  demanded  and  speered  of 
the  Princess  Margaret,  ^'  whether  she  were  content  of  her  own 
free  Avill,  and  without  compulsion,  to  wed  his  master." 

Margaret  answered,  "  If  it  please  my  lord  and  father  the  King, 
and  my  lady  and  mother  the  Q,ueen,  I  am  content." 

The  King  assuring  her  "  that  it  was  their  will  and  pleasure  ;" 
Margaret  knelt  and  received  the  blessing  of  both  her  royal  pa- 
rents, most  solemnly  given.  The  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  pro- 
ceeded to  read  the  words  of  the  jiancelles,  first  to  the  Earl  of  Both- 
well,  and  then  to  the  Princess  : — 

"  I,  Patrick,  Earl  of  Bothwell,  Procurator  of  the  right  high 
and  mighty  Prince  James,  by  the  grace  of  God  King  of  Scotland, 
my  sovereign  lord,  having  sufficient  power  to  contract  matrimony 
per  verba  de  prcseyiti,  with  thee  Margaret,  daughter  to  the  right 
excellent,  &c.,  Prince  and  Prince.?s,  Henry,  by  the  grace  of  God 
King  of  England,  &c.,  and  Elizabeth,  Clueen  of  the  same,  &c., 
do  here  contract  matrimony  with  thee,  Margaret,  and  take  thee 
unto  and  for  the  wife  and  spouse  of  my  said  sovereign  lord,  James, 


12  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

King  of  Scotland,  All  others  for  thee  he  forsaketh,  i?i  and  du- 
ring Ids  and  thine  lives,  natural ;  '  and  thereto  I  plight  and  give 
thee  his  faith  and  troth,  hy  power  and  authority  committed  and 
given  to  me." 

The  Princess  Margaret's  betrothment  was  completed  by  the 
following  words,  which  she  repeated  after  the  Archbishop  of 
Glasgow  : — 

"  I,  Margaret,  first  daughter  of  the  right  excellent,  right  high 
and  mighty  Prince  and  Princess,  Henry,  by  the  grace  of  God 
King  of  England,  &c.,  and  Elizabeth,  Q,ueen  of  the  same,  wit- 
tingly and  of  deliberate  mind,  having  tivelve  years  complete  in 
age  in  the  month  of  November  be  past,  contract  matrimony  with 
the  right  excellent,  &c.,  Prince  James,  King  of  Scotland,  (for) 
the  person  of  whom,  Patrick,  Earl  of  Both  well,  is  procurator ; 
and  I  take  the  said  James,  King  of  Scotland,  unto  and  for  my 
husband  and  spouse,  and  all  other  for  him  forsake  during  his  and 
tnine  lives  fiatural ;  and  thereto  I  plight  and  give  to  him  in 
your  person,  as  procurator  aforesaid,  my  faith  and  troth," 

When  the  Princess  Margaret  had  thus  plighted  her  troth,  the 
royal  trumpeters,  who  had  by  her  father's  orders  been  stationed 
on  the  leads  at  the  end  of  the  Glueen's  chamber,  blew  up  their 
most  inspiriting  notes,  and  a  "  loud  noise  of  minstrels  answered 
in  their  best  and  most  joyful  manner." 

Elizabeth  of  York  rose  when  her  daughter  had  completed  her 
vow  of  betrothal,  and,  taking  her  by  the  hand,  led  her  to  the 
banquet  set  out  in  her  private  apartments,  and  placed  her  at 
table  as  if  she  had  been  a  queen  visiting  her  ;  and  they  both 
dined  at  one  mess  covered.  The  King  withdrew  to  a  separate 
banquet  laid  out  in  his  chamber,  where  he  dined,  placing  the 
Scottish  proxy  and  the  Archbishop  of  Glasgow  at  his  own  table. 
In  the  afternoon  a  very  splendid  jousting  took  place,  where  Ed- 
ward, Duke  of  Buckingham,  Charles  Brandon,  and  Lord  William 
of  Devonshire,  distinguished  themselves  remarkably  "  by  the 
spears  they  brake,  and  the  right  goodly  gambades  they  made." 

^  Tliis  sentence  is  very  singular,  as  it  seems  to  bind  James  IV.  for  his 
whole  hfe,  in  case  of  Margaret's  death,  and  appears  therefore  a  strange  inno- 
vation in  the  rites  of  marriage  in  the  Roman  Church,  whicli  never  varies 
even  m  trifles.  If  the  herald-clironicler  had  not  recorded  a  reciprocal  vow 
as  made  by  Margaret  to  James,  the  author  would  have  treated  the  obliga- 
tion us  a  mistake  of  the  transcriber. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  13 

In  the  morning,  after  the  King  and  Ciueen  had  "soped,"^  the 
young  Q,ueen  of  Scots  came  into  her  royal  mother's  great  cham- 
ber. "  Her  Grace  gave  thankings  to  all  those  noblemen  who  had 
taken  pains  and  charge  to  joust  for  her  sake,  which  full  well  and 
notable  had  accomplished  the  same."  According  to  her  direc- 
tions given  to  her  royal  sire's  officer-of-arms,  she  thus,  by  the  help 
of  their  voices,  proclaimed — "  Rayne  de  Shezells^  and  Charles 
Brandon  have  right  well  justed,  John  Carr  ^  better,  and  the  Lord 
William  of  Devonshire  best  of  all." 

Then,  by  the  advice  of  her  ladies,  the  young  Q,ueen  of  Scots 
gave  personal  thanks  to  all  the  gentlemen  and  nobles  who  had 
jousted  in  her  honor.  After  the  prizes  had  been  distributed 
among  them  with  her  royal  hand,  a  goodly  pageant  entered  the 
hall,  curiously  wrought  with  fenestralis  (windows)  having  many 
lights  burning  in  the  same,  in  manner  of  a  lantern,  out  of  wliich 
sorted  (issued  in  pairs)  divers  sorts  of  morisks.*  Also  a  very 
goodly  disguising  of  six  gentlemen  and  six  gentlewomen,  who 
danced  divers  dances  ;  then  followed  a  voide  or  banquet. 

The  Earl  Both  well  sent  to  the  English  officers-of-arms  the 
gown  of  cloth-of-gold  he  wore  when  he  was  affianced  to  the  Prin- 
cess in  the  name  of  his  sovereign  lord ;  likewise  a  fee  of  a  hun- 
dred crowns.^ 

Another  day  of  jousting  took  place  ;  at  night  there  was  a  no- 
table supper,  after  which  Henry  VII.  sent  his  present  of  a  cup- 
board, with  its  plate,  to  the  Archbishop  of  G-lasgow.  It  consisted 
of  "  a  cup  of  gold  and  cover,  six  great  standing  pots  of  silver,  four- 
and-twenty  great  bowls  of  silver,  with  their  covers,  a  basin  and 

1  Meaning  that  they  supped  their  porridge,  broth,  or  whatever  spoon- 
meat  formed  their  earliest  meal ;  tea  and  coffee  being  then  unknown  at 
royal  breakfast  tables  in  Christendom. 

*  A  French  knight  or  noble,  whose  name  is  evidently  mis-spelled. 
^  One  of  the  Scottish  knights. 

*  Probably  Moors  or  moriscos,  although  the  term  may  mean  simply 
masked  persons,  or  morris-dancers. 

^  The  aflfiancing  of  the  Princess  Margaret  to  the  King  of  Scotland  was 
declared  to  the  citizens  of  London  on  the  same  morning  that  it  took  place, 
being  proclaimed  at  St.  Paul's  Cross.  Te  Demu  was  sung  in  the  cathedral 
adjoining.  Twelve  hogsheads  of  Gascon  wine  were  broached,  and  bestowed 
by  Henry  VII.  on  the  populace.  London  blazed  with  bonfires  at  the  same 
time  that  the  pageants  and  ballets  were  performing  in  the  hall  of  Richmond 
Palace. 


14  MARGARET     TUDOH. 

ewer  of  silver,  and  a  chafoir^  of  silver."  Another  cupboard  of 
plate,  of  great  value,  was  presented  by  the  King  to  Patrick  Hep- 
burn, Earl  of  Both  well.  The  elect  Bishop  of  Murray  received  a 
standing  cup  of  gold  covered,  and  one  thousand  crowns  of  gold  of 
the  solaile  (of  the  sun),  all  in  a  goodly  bag  of  crimson  velvet,  well 
garnished.  The  Lord  Lion,  or  principal  herald  of  Scotland,  who 
was  officiating  at  these  important  fiancels,  received  a  purse  with 
a  hundred  of  the  soleil-crowns,  and  a  goodly  gown  of  fine  satin. 

A  few  days  only  passed  by  ere  all  the  splendor  of  Margaret's 
betrothal  was  covered  with  the  deepest  mourning.  Elizabeth  of 
York,  the  bride's  afiectionate  mother,  having  given  birth  to  a 
daughter,  expired,  Feb.  11.  The  utmost  grief  wrung  the  hearts 
of  Henry  VH.  and  his  children.  But  the  Scotch  ambassadors  for 
the  marriage  of  Margaret  could  not  fail  to  perceive  that  this  ca- 
lamity had  greatly  strengthened  the  chance  of  the  Princess-E.oyal 
succeeding  to  the  crown  of  England,  since  her  mother  might 
have  superseded  her  with  many  sons,  if  that  dueen's  life  had 
been  longer  spared. 

The  funeral  and  deep  mourning  for  Elizabeth  of  York  put  a 
temporary  stop  to  all  further  proceedings  regarding  the  marriage 
of  her  daughter.  Meantime  it  will  be  desirable  to  give  some  ac- 
count of  the  sovereign  to  whom  she  had  been  plighted. 

James  IV.  was  fully  eighteen  years  older  than  his  young  bride, 
being  born  in  March  1472.'^  He  was  the  son  of  James  UL  and 
Margaret  of  Denmark,  his  queen.  The  hour  of  the  young  Prince's 
birth  caused  great  consternation  at  the  Scottish  Court.  James  HL, 
being  given  to  the  study  of  astrology,  predicted,  by  means  of  his 
perverse  attempts  at  reading  the  future,  all  sorts  of  injuries  to 
himself  and  his  kingdom,  owing  to  the  peculiar  position  of  certain 
planets  when  his  harmless  babe  made  his  appearance  in  this 
world.  Moreover,  the  King  had  a  dream  which  alarmed  him 
exceedingly  :  he  consulted  his  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrew's,  who 
was  addicted  to  the  same  vain  sciences  as  himself,  and  received 


*  Supposed  to  be  a  chaufrette,  used  by  the  French  to  hold  ashes,  for  the 
purpose  of  keeping  tlie  feet  warm  on  the  stone  or  brick  floors. 

2  St.  Patrick's  day,  March  17,  is  mentioned  by  some  liistorians  as  James 
IV.'s  birthday  ;  yet  not  only  the  day,  but  the  year  of  his  birth,  is  variously 
quoted.  Bishop  Lesley's  History  gives  the  above  date.  He  could  scarcely 
be  mistaken  in  the  year  of  the  birth  of  his  royal  patroness's  grandfather. 
Lesley's  Hist.,  p.  89. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  15 

tlie  interpretation  "  that  the  royal  lion  of  Scotland,  in  course  of 
time,  would  be  torn  by  his  whelps."  ^ 

The  very  means  James  III.  adopted  to  avoid  an  imaginary 
danger  led  him  into  a  real  one.  He  resolved  to  estrange  him« 
self  from  his  Clueen  and  son,  and,  hke  the  king  in  the  Arabian 
Tales,  fortified  Stirling  Castle,  to  inclose  therein  the  young  Prince, 
lest  he  should  owe  to  him  his  dethronement  or  death.  Without 
dwelling  on  the  stormy  events  of  James  lll.'s  reign  and  life,  it  is 
sufficient  to  say  that  his  son  grew  up  rapidly,  and  manifested 
great  genius  and  abilities  ;  but,  under  the  care  of  his  patient, 
much-enduring  mother,  seemed  as  if  he  meant  to  put  to  shame 
forever  the  science  of  astrology,  by  proving  a  young  royal  lion  far 
too  docile  to  attack  his  sire,  or  cause  him  trouble  of  any  kind. 

Meantime,  James  III.  made  many  attempts  at  marrying  his 
son.  First,  he  contracted  him  in  boyhood  to  the  Lady  Cecilia, 
second  daughter  to  Edward  IV.,  and  even  received  some  cash  as 
earnest  of  the  bride's  portion.  After  the  death  of  her  warlike 
sire,  James  III.  held  no  faith  with  the  forlorn  orphan  of  West- 
minster Sanctuary  ;  but,  with  shameful  facility,  tendered  the  hand 
of  his  son  to  her  cousin,  the  Lady  Anne  of  Suffolk,  the  favorite 
niece  of  the  successful  usurper,  Uichard  III.  "  Forthwith,"  says 
Bishop  Lesley,  "that  young  lady  was  called  Duchess  of  Rothesay 
at  the  court  of  the  King  of  England  ;  but  when  his  untimely 
death  took  place,  she  lost  that  name  as  quickly  as  her  cousin 
Lady  Cecilia."  The  death  of  Margaret  of  Denmark,  Glueen  of 
Scotland,  occurring  when  her  son  was  about  fourteen,  her  husband 
had  soon  after  cause  to  rue  the  mistake  he  had  committed  in  re- 
gard to  the  education  of  the  Prince.  The  King,  while  following 
the  dictates  of  superstitious  caprice,  had  renounced  all  the  natural 
love  that  ought  to  have  been  between  him  and  his  son,  and,  at 
the  same  time,  the  proper  authority  and  influence  of  a  father. 

Of  course,  the  royal  boy  could  have  no  great  regard  for  a  father 
whom  he  Avas  wilUng  to  love,  but  who  would  never  see  him. 
Hence,  then,  it  came  to  pass  that,  when  the  Q,ueen  was  no  more, 
the  Prince  gladly  availed  himself  of  the  aid  of  those  barons  who 
were  his  father's  enemies,  to  escape  from  the  gloom  of  the  wizard 
castle  in  which  he  was  immured.  While  the  King  thought  his 
heir  was  safe  under  the  care  of  his  castellan,  Shaw  of  Sauchie, 
at  Stirling  Castle,  young  James  was  indulging  in  the  dreams  of 
^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  and  history  of  Scotland,  Encyc.  Brit. 


16  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

first  love,  wooing  the  fair  Margaret  Drummond,  by  Tay's  banks, 
among  the  delicious  groves  of  Stobbeshaw. 

It  was  an  attachment  which  had  grown  up  from  childhood. 
Margaret  is  supposed  to  have  been  one  of  the  maidens  of  the 
Clueen,  his  mother.  Her  father  was  considered  the  wisest  and 
most  prosperous  noble  in  Scotland,  and  her  family  had  before  that 
time  given  a  Q,ueen  to  the  country. 

The  traditions  of  Scotland  attribute  the  words  of  the  beautiful 
melody  called  "  Tay's  Banks"  to  the  young  Prince  of  Scotland, 
when  under  the  influence  of  his  passion  for  the  Lady  Margaret 
Drummond.  Some  of  the  lines  are  intelligible  to  modern  readers, 
when  divested  of  their  uncouth  orthography. 

"  The  river  through  the  rocks  rushed  out 
Through  roses  raised  on  high, 
The  shene  birds  full  sweet  'gan  shout 
Forth  from  that  seemly  shaw  ;  ^ 
Joy  was  within  and  joy  without, 
Wliere  Tay  ran  down  with  streames  stout 
Right  under  Stobbeshaw."^ 

The  young  Prince  v/as  awakened  from  his  dream  of  happy  love 
on  Tay's  banks,  by  the  civil  war  that  broke  out  against  his 
father.  The  discontented  barons  proclaimed  him  King,  by  the 
style  of  James  IV.'  He  was  hurried  to  the  head  of  the  insurgent 
militia.  For  several  weeks,  skirmishing  with  various  success  took 
place.  James  III.  was  wounded  and  defeated  in  the  battle  of 
Sauchie,  near  Stirling.  Finally  he  was  assassinated  by  an  agent 
of  the  confederated  barons  at  Sauchie  Mill,  where  he  had  taken 
refuge,*  about  the  9th  of  June,  1488. 

James  IV.  being  one  of  the  most  popular  sovereigns  that  ever 
reigned  in  Scotland,  his  countrymen  have  fondly  endeavored  to 
cleanse  his  memory  from  all  possible  imputation  of  guilt  regard- 
ing his  father's  death,  by  affirming  that  he  was  only  thirteen  or 
fourteen  when  this  tragedy  occurred.  He  was,  however,  born 
March,  1472,  and  therefore  had  entered  his  seventeenth  year  in 
June,  1488.' 

^  Shaw  is  a  skirting  or  belt  of  copsewood,  intermixed  with  forest  trees. 

^  This  fragment  of  royal  poetry  in  the  fifteenth  century  is  preserved  ia 
the  original  orthography,  among  other  historical  treasures,  in  the  sevea- 
teenth  number  of  the  History  of  Noble  Families  (Drummonds). 

^  Lesley,  Hist.     Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Buchanan,  (fee. 

*  Ibid.  "  Lesley,  p.  58. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  17 

There  were  few  persons  of  the  revolutionary  party  who  had 
any  certain  knowledge  of  the  fate  of  James  III.  ;  and  those  who 
were  aware  of  it  durst  not  reveal  the  fact,  for  the  young  King 
manifested  the  utmost  solicitude  for  his  father's  safety,  and  spoke 
of  him  wdth  such  filial  affection,  that  it  was  deemed  best  to  leave 
him  in  suspense.  The  leaders  of  his  faction  brought  him  to  Lin- 
lithgow Palace  ^  within  a  few  hours  of  their  victory,  and  when 
there  a  cry  was  suddenly  raised  by  the  townsmen  that  Sir  Andrew 
Wood,  James  III.'s  naval  commander,  was  seen  "  travishing  up 
and  down  the  Forth." 

News  arrived  directly  afterward,  from  Stirling,  that  Sir  An- 
drew Wood  had  sent  his  "float-boats"  to  the  shore,  and  had 
received  many  of  the  wounded  belonging  to  his  King's  forces  on 
board  his  famous  war-ships,  the  Flower  and  the  Yellow  Carvel, 
It  was  affirmed,  likewise,  that  James  III.  was  safe  with  his  val- 
iant sea-captain. 

Messengers  were  immediately  sent  to  demand  of  Sir  Andrew 
Wood  whether  the  King  were  in  either  of  his  ships  ?  The  cap- 
tain replied  "  he  was  not,  and  they  might  search  his  ships  if  they 
chose." 

The  confederate  lords  then  asked  if  he  would  come  on  shore  for 
a  conference.  Sir  Andrew  Wood,  who  at  that  time  had  ascer- 
tained the  murder  of  his  royal  master,  refused  to  come,  unless 
they  sent  on  board  his  ships  hostages  of  great  consequence.  When 
this  was  done  he  came  on  shore,  and  met  the  young  King  and  his 
council  at  Leith,  the  place  appointed. 

James  IV.  was  anxiously  expecting  to  see  his  father,  whose 
person  was  totally  unknown  to  him,  when  the  handsome  and 
majestic  naval  chief  entered  his  presence.  He  gazed  earnestly  in 
his  face,  and  with  the  tears  overflowing  his  eyes,  said  to  him, 
"  Sir,  are  you  my  father  ?" 

Sir  Andrew  Wood  replied,  weeping,  "  I  am  not  your  father, 
but  your  father's  true  servant ;  and  shall  be  enemy  till  I  die  of 
those  who  were  the  cause  of  his  down-putting." 

The  Lords  demanded  of  him  "if  he  knew  Avhere  James  III. 
was  ?"  AVood  declared  "  that  he  knew  not."  Then  they  speered 
"  who  those  were  that  came  out  of  the  field  of  battle,  and  passed 
to  the  ships  in  the  float-boats  ?" 

"  It  was  I  and  my  brother,"  replied  Sir  Andrew  Wood.  "  We 
1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  p.  224. 


18  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

came  on  shore,  and  put  ourselves  ready  to  have  aided  our  Kuig 
with  our  lives." 

"Is  he  not  in  your  ships  ?"   asked  the  lords. 

Wood  ansv^ered,  "  He  is  not.  Would  to  God  he  were  there  ; 
I  should  defend  and  hold  him  skaithless  from  all  the  treasonable 
traitors  that  have  cruelly  murdered  him.  For  I  trust  to  see  the 
day  when  they  will  be  hanged  and  drawn  for  their  demerits." 

The  blunt  speaking  of  the  faithless  seaman  not  a  little  incensed 
those  among  his  audience,  whose  consciences  accused  them  re- 
garding the  death  of  James  III.  They  murmured  together,  they 
would  even  have  cut  Sir  Andrew  to  pieces,  had  not  the  recollec- 
tion of  their  hostages  restrained  their  fury.  They  had  heard 
enough  from  that  loyal  gentleman,  and  their  young  King  a  little 
too  much  for  their  purposes.  The  bold  seaman  was  therefore 
hurried  on  board  his  ship,  and  exchanged  for  the  hostages.  It 
was  high  time,  as  the  poor  hostages  declared,  for  Sir  Andrew 
Wood's  brother  was  just  preparing  to  hang  them.^ 

The  body  of  James  III.  being  soon  after  discovered,  he  was 
(June  25)  buried  in  great  state  at  Cambuskenneth  Abbey. 

The  first  few  weeks  of  his  reign  were  devoted  by  the  young 
King  to  solemn  mourning  for  his  father,  and  he  attended  night 
and  morning  orisons  for  the  soul  of  the  deceased  in  the  chapel- 
royal  in  Stirling  Castle.  The  chaplains  deplored  and  lamented 
the  violent  death  of  the  unfortunate  King  with  great  pathos,  till 
at  last  the  mind  of  young  James  IV.  began  to  awaken  to  the  fact 
that  all  the  injury  which  had  befallen  his  father  liad  been  done 
in  his  name,  for  the  rebel  army  had  been  ostensibly  commanded 
by  him.  One  day  he  startled  the  Dean  of  the  chapel  by  the 
question,  "  How  am  I  to  atone  for  my  own  share  of  that  par- 
ricide ?" 

The  Dean  was  a  good  man,  but  in  great  fear  of  the  lords  of 
the  young  King's  council.  He,  however,  spoke  peace  to  him  as 
well  as  he  could  ;  and  bade  him  trust  in  God's  mercy  for  pardon.' 

At  the  head  of  the  Scottish  Council  was  Lord  Drummond  of 
Stobshall,  the  father  of  the  Lady  Margaret,  who  was  passion- 
ately beloved  by  James  IV,  Lord  Drummond  had  always  been 
the  opponent  of  James  III.,  and  had  taken  a  leading  part  in  the 
late  insurrection.     It  is  evident  that  he  indulged  his  young  mon- 

I  IJndsay  of  Pitscottie.  2  ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  19 

arch  with  the  company  of  Margaret,  and  doubtless  had  full  in- 
tention to  raise  her  to  the  throne  of  Scotland. 

The  coronation  of  James  IV.,  which  soon  after  took  place  at 
Scone,  near  Perth,  seems  for  a  time  to  have  effaced  his  first 
alarms  of  conscience  for  the  death  of  his  father.  As  early  as 
August  5,  1488,  the  royal  Compotus,  or  expense-book,  proves 
that  he  was  at  Linlithgow  Palace,  and  had  entered  into  a  course 
of  gaieties,  the  Lady  Margaret  Drummond  being  with  him. 

In  October,  the  same  autumn,  is  a  charge  of  £5  6s.  for  black 
"  rysillis,  to  be  ane  gown  for  the  Lady  Margaret;"  gold,  azure, 
and  silver  cost  £6  18s.  to  "  warken  it,"  or  embroider  it,  besides 
a  further  outlay  of  thirteen  shillings  for  "  fringes  till  it."  ^  En- 
tries of  gratuities  to  gysar^'^  and  players,  who  played  before  the 
King  at  Linlithgow  about  the  same  period,  likewise  occur.  Most 
historians  agree  that  James  IV.  married  the  Lady  Margaret 
Drummond  with  all  the  ceremonies  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church,  excepting  the  dispensation^  for  their  relationship  within 
the  prohibited  degrees,  which  measure  could  not  be  taken  with- 
out publicity  being  given  to  their  concealed  wedlock. 

Royal  alliances  for  the  young  King  were  in  the  interim  fre- 
quently discussed  by  his  council.  The  extreme  youth  of  the 
daughter  of  Henry  VII.,  with  whom  his  people  wished  him  to 
ally  himself,  was  his  excuse  for  remaining,  if  not  single,  yet 
without  an  acknowledged  dueen.  The  part  he  took  in  the  en- 
couragement of  Perkin  Warbeck  did  not  show  any  intention  to 
conciliate  Henry  VII.,  or  obtain  his  alliance;  but  it  had  the 
efiect  of  making  that  politic  monarch  eager  to  convert  a  trouble- 
some neighbor  into  a  friend  and  relation.  James  IV.  and  Mar- 
garet Tudor,  through  the  urgency  of  her  father  and  the  Scottish 
Council,  were  therefore  contracted,  as  before  mentioned,  in  1500. 
Nevertheless,  the  evil  day  was  still  distant  when  the  King  of 
Scotland  would  be  forced  either  to  own  his  concealed  marriage 
with  Margaret  Drummond,  or  dismiss  her  to  make  way  for^the 
young  English  Princess. 

The  great  abilities  of  James  IV.  as  a  ruler,  the  success  which 
attended  his  plans  for  civilizing  and  enriching  his  people,  the 
formidable  position  assumed  by  his  country  as  a  naval  power,  all 

^  Tytler's  Scotland,  vol.  iv.  p.  289.  "^  Probably  disguisers  or  masks. 

^  Moreri,  on  the  name  Drummond,  gives  the  fullest  account  of  this  curious 
private  history.     See  also  Tytler's  Hist,  of  Scotland,  vol.  iv. 


20  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

obtained  for  him  the  admiration  of  cotemporary  statesmen. 
There  was  hkewise  enough  of  romance  connected  with  him  to 
attract  the  attention  of  the  classes  delighting  in  the  picturesque 
and  marvelous.  The  beauty  of  his  person,  the  variety  of  his 
attainments,  his  skill  and  taste  in  music  and  poetry  ;  the  wonder- 
iul  facility  with  which  the  hand  that  struck  the  lute  and  clavi- 
chord tastefully,  could  sway  the  adze  of  the  shipwright  when 
buildii)g  his  mighty  war-ship  at  Falkirk,  captivated  every  one. 
Likewise,  the  singular  penance  he  enjoined  himself  (for  having 
been  brought  in  arms  against  his  father),  by  wearing  an  iron 
chain  about  his  waist,  to  awake  remembrance  of  his  sin  when 
it  hurt  him,  was  appreciated  as  a  most  edifying  action  in  that 
era.  Therefore,  among  all  ranks  and  conditions  of  people,  the 
King  of  Scotland  was  considered  as  a  remarkable  character 
throughout  Europe. 

Notwithstanding  the  solemnity  of  the  fiancels  by  which  he 
had  engaged  the  Princess  Margaret  Tudor  as  Glueen,  James  IV. 
only  considered  the  same  in  the  light  of  a  political  measure, 
emanating  from  the  importunity  of  his  Privy  Council.  Resolved 
not  to  forsake  his  wedded  wife,  he  prepared  to  bring  the  matter 
to  a  crisis,  and  struggle  against  all  opposition  in  his  cabinet.  He 
sent  for  a  dispensation  from  the  Pope,  on  account  of  his  nearness 
of  kin  with  the  Lady  Margaret  Drummond,  meaning,  when  it 
was  promulgated,  openly  to  declare  his  wife  Glueen  of  Scotland, 
and  legitimate,  by  that  means,  the  little  daughter  she  had  brought 
him.  Some  envier  of  the  house  of  Drummond,  or  personal  enemy 
of  its  fair  daughters,  effectually  prevented  the  royal  intention. 

"  Margaret  Drummond,"  says  the  learned  historian  of  her  line 
(himself  a  distinguished  son  of  that  illustrious  house),  "  was  the 
daughter  of  Lord  Drummond  and  Elizabeth  Lindsay.  James 
the  Fourth  fell  in  love  with  her  while  Duke  of  Rothesay  ;  he 
was  affianced  to  her,  and  meant  to  make  her  his  Q,ueen  without 
consulting  his  council.  He  was  opposed  by  those  nobles  who 
wished  him  to  wed  Margaret  Tudor.  His  clergy  likewise  pro- 
tested against  his  marriage,  as  within  the  prohibited  degrees. 
Before  the  King  could  receive  the  dispensation,  his  wife  was  poi 
soned  at  breakfast  at  Drummond  Castle,  with  her  two  sisters, 
Lady  Fleming  and  Sybella  Drummond.  Suspicion  fell  on  the 
Kennedys."^       But    wherefore,    and   who   the    Kennedys    were, 

1  History  of  the  Drummond  JFamily,  Part  xvii.  p.  10,  in  History  of  Noble 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  21 

whether  angry  men  or  jealous  women,  our  informant  saith  not. 
Yet  some  chroniclers  declare  that  there  was  a  lady  of  that  name 
who,  for  a  time,  had  disputed  the  heart  of  the  crowned  chevaUer 
with  his  wedded  love. 

It  is  not  the  least  mysterious  part  of  this  inexplicable  murder, 
that  the  Glueen  of  James  lY.,  the  royal  Margaret  Tudor  herself, 
long  years  after  the  death  of  her  King,  accuses,  in  one  of  her 
stormy  letters,  the  brother-in-law  of  Margaret  Drummond  as  her 
destroyer.  "Lord  Fleming,'"  she  says,  "lor  evil  will  that  he 
had  to  his  wife  (Euphemia  Drummond),  caused  poison  three 
sisters,  one  of  them  his  wife  ;  and  this  is  known  as  truth  through- 
out all  Scotland.  An'  if  lie  be  good  to  put  about  the  King,  my 
son,  God  knoweth  I" 

Whatsoever  be  the  truth  of  this  unsupported  accusation,  it  is 
evident,  by  the  very  tenor  of  it,  that  the  Lord  Fleming  was  alive, 
and  in  flourishing  circumstances,  twenty  years  after  the  perpetra- 
tion of  this  domestic  tragedy.  But  if  James  IV.  had  had  the 
least  reason  to  suppose  him  guilty  of  the  wholesale  murder  of  his 
wife  and  her  sisters,  it  is  tolerably  certain  that  he  would  not  have 
remained  unscathed  in  peace  and  prosperity  all  those  years. 

Euphemia,  with  the  intended  Q,ueen,  Margaret  Drummond, 
and  their  young  sister,  Sybella,  who  all  partook  of  the  dire  break- 
fast some  cruel  hand  had  prepared  for  them,  were  buried  side  by 
side  in  the  center  of  the  cathedral  church  at  Dunblane.  The 
place  of  repose  of  the  unfortunate  trio  was  marked  by  three  long 
blue  stones  as  lately  as  the  year  1817.^ 

James  IV.  was  left  in  the  distraction  of  grief  such  as  disposi- 
tions at  once  impetuous  and  affectionate  alone  can  feel.  His 
young  daughter,  Margaret,  having  escaped  the  fatal  repast  which 
had  destroyed  her  mother  and  aunts,  he  went  in  person  to  Drum- 


British  Families,  published  by  Pickering.  The  value  of  this  beautiful  work 
is  not  limited  to  the  rare  anecdotes  with  which  it  is  replete,  although,  as 
may  be  seen  above,  the  biographer  is  indebted  for  incidents  which  it  were 
vain  to  peek  elsewhere.  It  is  deserving  great  attention  on  account  of  its 
embelli-hments,  being  enriched  with  portraits  and  woodcuts  of  local  scenery 
and  with  the  most  tasteful  ornaments,  designed  and  exquisitely  tinted  by 
the  pencil  of  the  accomplished  Lady  Strange. 

^  Letter  of  Queen  Margaret  Tudor,  Cottonian  Collection,  Caligula,  Brit. 
Mus.  MS.  B.  1.     Holograph,  Nov.  24,  1523. 

^  History  of  the  Drummond  Family,  Noble  Families,  (fee. 


22  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

mond  Castle,'  and  took  possession  of  the  bereaved  little  one.  His 
Compotus  or  expense-book  bears  witness,  too,  tbat  he  loaded  the 
child  with  costly  presents,  and  lodged  her  near  him  in  his  palace, 
probably  to  protect  her  personally  from  the  unknown  but  deadly 
enemy  of  her  race. 

If  the  dispensation  from  Rome  had  preceded  the  fatal  breakfast 
which  deprived  the  little  Lady  Margaret  of  her  mother,  the  child, 
by  the  laws  of  her  country,  would  have  taken  rank,  as  Princess- 
Royal  of  Scotland.  She  was  brought  up  at  Edinburgh  Castle, 
under  the  appellation  of  "the  Lady  Margaret,  the  King's 
daughter,"  and  finally  married  a  noble  of  high  rank.'^  She  can 
scarcely  be  classed  as  an  illegitimate  child  ;  neither  can  her  un- 
fortunate mother,  a  devoted  wife  to  a  loving  husband,  be  ranked 
in  the  meretricious  sisterhood  of  royal  favorites. 

James  IV.,  after  his  heartstrings  had  been  rent  by  the  tragical 
death  of  his  wedded  love,  became  reckless,  and  unhappily  formed 
illicit  ties  which  were  productive  of  much  evil  both  to  himself 
and  his  descendants.  But  had  his  second  spouse,  Margaret  of 
England,  been  nearer  the  age  of  her  hapless  predecessor,  or  had 
assimilated  with  his  temper  and  pursuits  when  she  grew  into 
companionship  with  him,  perhaps  his  memory  would  have  been 
freer  from  such  reproach. 

His  first  marriage  must  be  classed  with  that  of  King  William 
the  Lion  with  Margaret  Hutchinson,  whose  daughter  was  de- 
clared by  the  Scottish  Parliament  for  a  time  heiress  to  the  throne.^ 
Likewise  with  that  of  Joanna  of  Kent  with  Edward  the  Black 
Prince,  which  for  many  years  subsisted  before  a  dispensation  was 
deemed  requisite  by  the  Roman  Sec.  Again  with  the  love-match 
of  his  descendant,  James  II.  of  Great  Britain,  when  Duke  of 
York,  and  Anne  Hyde,  who,  though  no  lady  of  royal  blood  like 
Margaret  Drummond,  was  recognized  as  the  wife  of  the  prince 
by  the  righteous  laws  of  the  Reformed  Church  of  England  ;  and 
her  daughters  occupied  successively  the  throne  of  Great  Britain. 

^  "Item,  the  24  day  of  June  1502,  the  King  was  at  Drummond,  given  to 
Margaret  Drummond,  by  the  King's  command,  twenty-one  pounds.  Item, 
to  her  nuriss  (nurse),  forty -one  pounds.  Item,  June  1603,  to  the  nuriss  that 
brought  the  King's  daugliter  fra  Drummond  to  Sterling,  £3  10s." — Mr. 
Tytler's  Appendix,  vol.  iv.  History  of  Scotland,  We  have  availed  ourselves 
of  Mr.  Tytler's  deep  research  concerning  this  mysterious  and  romantic  pass- 
age in  history. 

^  John,  Lord  Gordon.  3  Balfour's  Annals,  vol.  I  p.  27-80. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  23 

The  death  of  his  beloved  Margaret  Drummond  having  re- 
moved all  impediment  to  the  completion  of  the  state  wedlock  in 
which  his  council  had  bomid  him,  James  IV,  resigned  himself 
to  his  destiny.  But  whether  the  demise  of  the  mother  of  the 
Princess,  Margaret  Tudor,  had  rendered  her  alliance  many  de- 
grees more  valuable,  or  whether  the  Scottish  Council  dreaded  lest 
the  impetuous  monarch  might  surrender  his  heart  and  hand  to 
another  of  his  fair  countrywomen,  is  not  defined.  The  fact  is, 
however,  certain,  that  the  royal  English  bride  set  forward  on  her 
northern  journey  before  the  time  stipulated  by  her  father  for  her 
arrival  in  Scotland,  which,  by  her  marriage  articles,  was  Sep- 
tember 1,  1503. 

To  do  James  justice,  however  sad  and  sore  his  heart  might  be, 
after  he  had  done  all  in  his  power  to  show  respect  to  the  memory 
of  his  late  wife,  according  to  the  rites  of  the  church  then  estab- 
lished,^ after  he  had  settled  their  child  near  him,  he  honorably 
bent  his  thoughts  toward  winning  the  affections  of  the  young 
Princess  to  whom  his  country  had  bound  him. 

The  course  he  took  for  this  purpose  will  be  best  detailed  by 
following  the  quaint  journalist,  who  was  an  eye-witness  of  all  his 
proceedings,  being  our  former  acquaintance,  Mr.  John  Young, 
Somerset  Herald,  engaged  officially  in  the  bridal  progress  of  the 
Princess-Royal,  Margaret  Tudor,  from  England  to  Scotland. 

King  Henry  VII.  himself  escorted  his  favorite  child  on  her 
way  to  her  future  country.  The  royal  progress  set  forth,  in  great 
state,  from  Richmond  Palace,  June  16,  1503,  and  bent  its  course 
towards  CoUeweston,  one  of  the  most  southerly  castles  appertain- 
ing to  the  great  possessions  of  the  bride's  grandmother,  Margaret, 
Countess  of  Richmond.^  That  venerable  lady  received  her  son 
and  granddaughter,  June  27,  right  royally,  entertaining  them 
with  all  the  diversions  which  Derbyshire  and  Nottinghamshire 
could  afford,  for  more  than  a  fortnight. 

The  day  of  departure  at  leugth  drew  near.     Most  of  the  no- 

1  In  the  Treasurer's  Compotus,  date  of  February  1,  1,502-3,  is  the  follow: 
ing  entry  : — "  Item,  to  the  priests  of  Edinburgh,  to  do  dirge  and  saule  mass 
for  Mergratt  Drummond,  £v."  Again,  February  10,  same  year  : — "Item, 
to  the  piiests  that  sing  in  Dumblane  for  Margaret  Drummond,  their  quarter's 
fee,  five  pounds." — Tytler  s  Scotland,  notes,  &c.  vol.  iv.  p.  359.  The  date 
of  the  death  of  James  IV.'s  first  wife — a  point  unsettled — may  be  nearly 
ascertained  by  these  extracts. 

"  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ross,     Bannatyne,  p,  11. 


24  M  A  R  G  A  R  E  T     T  U  D  O  R. 

bility  of  England  who  could  claim  relationship  to  the  royal 
family  assembled  in  the  great  hall  of  Colleweston,  to  bid  farewell 
or  do  service  to  the  bride  of  Scotland.  The  Earl  of  Surrey,  her 
uncle  by  marriage,  appeared  at  the  head  of  the  cavaliers  who 
were  to  form  her  body-guard,  his  office  being  to  escort  her  to  her 
royal  husband.  Numbers  of  noble  ladies  were  there,  who  were 
to  accompany  her  as  attendants  into  Scotland  :  the  arrangement 
being  that  they  were  to  stay  or  return,  according  to  the  pleasure 
of  James  IV.  ^  The  marriage  settlements  of  the  young  Glueen 
having  stipulated  that  she  was  to  have  the  large  number  of 
twenty-four  English  attendants,  it  is  pretty  evident  that  the  King 
of  Scotland  was  thus  allowed  the  opportunity  of  choosing  out  of 
a  number  those  who  would  be  most  agreeable  to  him. 

Every  preiDaration  being  completed  for  departure,  the  young 
Glueen  of  Scotland  entered  the  hall  of  Colleweston,  and  received 
the  solemn  benediction  of  her  father  and  grandmother,  and  took 
her  last  mournful  farewell  of  both.  To  his  blessing,  publicly 
given  before  his  assembled  nobility,  Henry  VII.  added  a  fatherly 
exhortation  to  his  daughter  on  her  future  conduct.^  He  presented 
to  her,  at  the  same  time,  an  illuminated  manual,  or  handbook  of 
prayers,  having  first  inscribed  the  following  sentence  with  his 
own  hand  on  one  of  the  pages,  "  Remember  y^  kijncle  a7icl  lov- 
ing fader  in  If  good  'prayers,.  Henry  R."  Then  in  the  Calen- 
dar, on  the  blank  leaf  opposite  December,  occurs  another  of  his 
parental  reminiscences,  couched  in  yet  more  earnest  words — 
"  Pray  for  your  louving  fader,  that  gave  you  thys  booke,  and 
I  gyve  you  at  all  tymes  godd's  blessyjig  and  myne.    Henry  R." 

The  Q,ueen  of  Scotland,  when  all  adieus  were  made,  set  out 
from  Colleweston  "  in  fair  order  and  array."  ^  She  was  attired 
in  a  rich  riding-dress,  and  was  mounted  on  a  beautiful  white 
pony  or  palfrey.  Just  before  her  rode  Sir  David  Owen,  very 
splendidly  dressed.  The  Glueen  had  an  equestrian  bishop  at 
either  hand,  the  place  of  honor  being  given  to  the  Bishop  of 
Murray,  to  whose  care  she  was  especially  consigned,  he  being 
the  appointed  envoy  of  her  royal  lord.  On  her  left  hand  rode 
Nix,  Bishop  of  Norwich,  whose   name  has  an  evil  notoriety  in 

^  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ross.     Bannatyne,  p.  71. 
''  Hall,  p.  98.     Hollinshed,  History  of  Scotland,  vol.  i.  p.  290. 
3  Leland's  Collectanea,  vol.  iv.  p.  267-&00.     From  the  narrative  of  John 
Young,  Somerset  Herald,  who  was  present. 


M  A  R  G  A  R  E  T     T  U  D  O  R,  25 

history,  on  account  of  his  cruelties  in  after  life  to  the  Reformers 
of  his  diocese. 

Three  footmen  always  walked  close  to  the  dueen's  palfrey, 
"  very  honestly  appointed,"  with  portcullises  embroidered  on 
their  jackets.  Q.ueen  Margaret  was  followed  by  a  gentleman 
mounted,  leading  in  his  hand  a  palfrey  "very  richly  dight." 
This  cavalier  was  Sir  Thomas  Wortley,  recently  appointed  her 
Master  of  the  Horse.  Next  came  a  rich  litter,  borne  between 
two  fair  coursers  veiy  nobly  trapped,  which  the  Glueen  entered 
before  she  approached  any  large  town,  or  when  she  was  tired  of 
her  palfrey.  Two  other  footmen,  with  the  portcullis  badge, 
walked  on  each  side  of  the  royal  litter.  Then  followed  her 
ladies  on  fair  palfreys  ;  many  squires  rode  before  them — indeed 
none  but  squires  were  permitted  to  approach  them,  and  it  was 
a  "  right  fair  sight." 

Then  came  a  car,  finely  adorned,  in  which  were  four  ladies 
of  her  bed-chamber,  who  traveled  through  the  whole  journey. 
The  female  servants  of  the  ladies,  mounted  on  palfreys,  folloAved 
this  car  or  charrette. 

"  Near  the  dueen's  person  rode  Johannes  and  his  company, 
the  minstrels  of  music  ;  and  the  trumpeters,  with  displayed  ban- 
ners. In  her  entries  of  towns  and  the  departings  of  the  same, 
they  played  on  their  instruments  all  the  time  until  she  had 
passed  out."  ^ 

"  The  gentlemen  and  squires  in  attendance  of  Q,ueen  Mar- 
garet, more  particularly  her  Master  of  the  Horse,  exerted  them- 
selves on  such  occasions  to  keep  a  clear  space  round  her,  so  that 
she  might  the  more  readily  be  seen.  The  royal  liveries  were 
white  and  green,  with  the  arms  of  Scotland  and  England  parted 
with  red  roses  and  crowaied  portcullises" — the  Tudor  badge  m- 
herited  from  the  House  of  Beaufort. 

Such  was  the  order  of  march  in  which  tlie  bride  Q,ueen  of 
Scotland  left  the  paternal  presence,  and  issued  from  her  grand- 
dame's  demesne  of  CoUeweston. 

Several  nobles  of  the  highest  rank  in  her  father's  household 
bore  her  company  a  short  part  of  the  first  stage.  Lord  Derby, 
Constable  p|  England,^  with  Lord  Essex  (her  relative,  a  prince 

^  Leland's  Collectanea.  "■ir.!ii 

^  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald.     Ijord  Derby  was  the  husband  of  her 
grandmother,  Margaret  Richmond.    Bouchier,  Earl  of  Esse?,  was  the  nephew 
VOL.  I. B 


26  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

of  the  blood  royal  of  York-),  took  leave  of  her  one  mile  from 
Colleweston.  They  kissed  her  at  parting,  according  to  the  priv- 
ilege of  their  nearness  of  kin. 

From  Colleweston  the  young  bride  took  her  way  direct  to 
Grantham.  Sir  Robert  Dymock,  High  Sheriff  of  Lincoln,  met 
her  with  thirty  horsemen  of  his  retinue,  and,  holding  a  white 
wand,  salved  (liailed)  the  Q.ueen  ;  then,  bearing  the  white  wand 
on  high,  he  rode  before  her  as  far  as  the  limits  of  the  county  of 
Lincoln  lasted.  Thus  did  all  the  Sheriffs  of  the  other  counties 
through  which  she  passed. 

All  the  bells  were  rung  in  the  towns  and  villages  through 
which  her  progress  was  directed,  and  all  the  country  inhabitants 
lined  the  way  where  rode  the  Q,ueen  of  Scotland  to  see  her  ;  and 
they  brought  with  them  great  vessels  full  of  drink,  giving  them 
to  those  that  had  need  of  it,  saying,  "  If  better  we  had,  better  we 
should  have  brought  ;"  and  they  refused  all  payment. 

"  Four  miles  from  Grantham,  the  aldermen,  burgesses,  and 
inhabitants  of  that  town  met  her  in  fair  order,  and  convoyed  her 
to  it,  before  she  entered  the  college  of  Grantham  in  procession  ; 
and  the  friars-mendicants  received  her  singing  lauds.  Then 
lighted  from  his  horse,  Nix,  the  Lord  Bishop  of  Norwich,  and 
gave  the  young  bride  Q,ueen  the  crosses  to  kiss.  Thus  was  she 
brought  in  fair  array  to  her  lodging  in  Grantham,  which  was 
with  a  gentleman  called  Mr.  Hiol." 

The  royal  bride  tarried  the  whole  of  the  next  day,  being  Sun- 
day, at  Grantham,  in  Lincolnshire.  She  left  that  town  betimes 
on  Monday  morning  in  grand  procession,  the  Grantham  civil 
authorities,  in  their  best  dresses,  escorting  her  full  three  miles. 
Sir  Ptobert  Dymock,  with  thirty  cavaliers,  rode  before  her  grace 
till  within  a  short  distance  from  Newark,  where  he  surrendered 
his  charge  to  Sir  William  Pierrepoint,  Sheriff  of  Nottingham- 
shire, who  was  accompanied  by  his  friends.  Sir  William  Byron, 
Sir  John  Dunham,  or  Denham,  and  Sir  Jolin  Marcaret. 

"  Out  of  Newark  came  the  college,^  richly  attired,  in  pro- 
cession, therefore  the   young   Gtueen  entered  the   town  in  her 

of  her  great-grandfather,  Ptichard,  Duke  of  York,  claimant  of  the  English 
crown ;  but  the  Bouchiers  were  not  descended  from  the  lineal  heiress,  Jane 
Mortimer. 

1  Most  of  the  colleges  thus  mentioned  by  the  Herald  were  coUegiate 
churches. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  27 

grandest  array.  It  was  a  fair  sight  to  see  the  people  thronged 
in  the  windows  and  streets  of  Newark,  and  the  Q.ueen  was 
lodged  at  the  Hart." 

"  The  next  day's  journey  brought  dueen  Margaret  to  Tuxford, 
at  which  place  the  vicar  and  churchmen  came  in  their  best 
dresses.  That  time  the  Bishop  of  Murray  gave  the  dueen  the 
crosses  to  kiss,  and  she  lodged  at  the  Crown  in  Tuxford." 

"  All  the  next  neighbors  of  the  place  came  in  on  horseback, 
with  a  great  train  of  persons  on  foot,  to  see  her  at  her  departure 
from  the  town.  Half  a  mile  from  Tuxford,  Sir  William  Conyers, 
High  Sheriff  of  Yorkshire,  came  with  his  white  wand  to  bear 
before  Q,ueen  Margaret,  accompanied  by  Sir  William  Scarsgill 
well  arrayed,  his  horse's  harness  full  of  silver  campanes,  (httle 
bells).  Then  the  Sheriff  of  Nottinghamshire  took  leave,  and  she 
drew  near  to  Doncaster,  meeting  half-way  Sir  Edward  Savage 
and  Sir  Ralph  Ryder,  who  came  to  greet  her  in  fair  array. 
Glueen  Margaret  lodged  at  Scrowsby,  in  a  manor-house  of  the 
Archbishop  of  York,  where  she  slept,  June  12.^ 

"  There  came  Sir  G-ervase  Clifton,  with  many  persons  bearing 
his  device,  well  mounted.  Without  Doncaster  the  mayor  and 
burgesses,  on  foot,  received  the  Q/Ueen ;  and  she  entered  the 
town  in  procession,  and  lodged  at  the  convent  of  the  Carmielites." 

"  When  she  drew,  next  day,  nigh  to  Pontefract,  Sir  John 
Milton  met  her  with  seven  horsemen,  all  making  gambades. 
Sir  John  Saville  and  Sir  William  Gaskin  came  with  many 
mounted  gentlemen ;  and  at  Pontefract  the  friar  Jacobins  came 
to  her  in  procession.  Very  fair  was  her  array  when  she  entered 
that  town.  She  passed  through  Pontefract  Castle  to  the  abbey  ; 
and  the  abbot,  in  pontificals,  and  all  the  convent  at  the  door  of 
the  church,  received  her.  The  dueen  kissed  the  abbot's  cross 
and  entered  into  Pontefract  Church,  where  she  made  her  prayers 
and  went  to  her  lodging  in  the  same  place." 

The  Somerset  Herald  leaves  it  in  'doubt  whether  the  young 
Q,ueen  slept  in  the  castle,  the  scene  of  more  than  one  tragedy 
connected  with  her  race.'     However,  the  next  morning  (June 

1  Somerset  Herald's  narrative,  in  Leland. 

"^  Her  mother's  uncle  and  brother,  Earl  Rivers  and  Lord  Richard  Grey, 
had  been  put  to  death  within  the  memory  of  man  by  the  orders  of 
Richard  III.  at  Pontefract. 


28  MARGARETTUDOR. 

15)  the  bridal  train  issued  out  of  Pontefract  in  grand  procession. 
They  took  their  mid-day  meal  at  Tadcaster. 

The  progress  of  the  Q,ueen  of  Scotland  became  more  magnifi- 
cent as  she  proceeded  further  into  the  .great  northern  province  of 
Yorkshire,  where  many  of  the  southern  nobles  and  their  vassals 
were  to  surrender  their  task  of  escorting  her — their  places  being 
taken  by  the  gallant  guardians  of  the  English  border,  who  were 
to  protect  the  eldest  daughter  of  their  liege  beyond  the  stormy 
precincts  of  the  debatable  ground  to  where  the  laws  of  nations 
were  better  regarded.  The  Lord  Scrope  of  Bolton  met  her  in 
her  afternoon  stage  from  Tadcaster.  He  was  riding  in  great 
state,  with  his  lady  "  right  richly  beseen."  Their  son,  the  Lord 
Scrope  of  Upsal,  appeared  at  the  head  of  almost  an  army  of  the 
Yorkshire  chivalry,  composed  of  knights,  squires,  and  their  re- 
tainers. The  sheriffs  of  the  West  E-iding  likewise  came  to  wel- 
come her  grace  within  their  boundaries,  and  brought  her  forward 
till  the  whole  party  drew  up  within  a  mile  of  the  city  of  York. 

Here  the  royal  state  of  the  bride  Q^ueen's  procession  began  ; 
and  so  grand  were  the  preparations  within  the  walls  of  the 
northern  metropolis  that  she  found  it  requisite  to  change  her 
dress,  for  which  purpose  she  retired  to  her  litter,  where,  assisted 
by  her  tire-women,  she  performed  her  toilet  by  the  wayside. 
All  her  ladies  and  maidens  likewise  "  refreshed"  their  habili- 
ments ;  and  when  they  considered  themselves  sufficiently  bright- 
ened and  cleansed  from  the  dust  and  stains  of  travel,  York  gates 
were  opened,  and  a  grand  procession  of  civic  magnates  and 
gallant  Yorkshire  cavaliers  poured  forth  to  meet  and  welcome 
the  royal  train.  The  citizens  were  headed  by  the  Lord  Mayor 
of  York,  and  the  chivalry  by  the  Earl  of  Northumberland,  whose 
attention  to  his  dress  and  decorations  was  remarkable — so  much 
so,  that  Master  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  felt  himself  obhged 
to  draw  the  following  sketch  of  a  noble  fop  of  the  fifteenth 
century,  in  which  the  reality  of  Percy  of  Northumberland  almost 
rivals  the  bright  ideal  of  Sir  Piercy  Shafton  : — 

"  My  Lord  of  Northumberland  came  to  welcome  her  fair 
Grace  gayly  clothed  in  crimson  velvet.  At  the  openings  of  his 
sleeves  and  collar  appeared  large  borders  set  with  precious  stone, 
and  his  boots  were  of  black  velvet  worked  with  gold.  His  foot- 
cloth  of  crimson  velvet,  all  bordered  with  orfaverie  (beaten  and 
wrought  gold),  hung  to  the  ground.     Gold  embossed  work  ap- 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  29 

peared  on  his  arms,  which  were  very  rich,  on  his  saddle-how 
and  on  his  harness.  The  steed  on  which  he  was  mounted  was  a 
right  fair  one  ;  and  as  he  approached  the  dueen,  ever  and  anon 
he  made  gamhades  pleasant  to  see.  In  company  with  the  Earl 
of  Northumberland  rode  the  venerable  knight,  Sir  Launcelot 
Threkeld  (honorably  celebrated  by  Wordsworth  in  our  days), 
Sir  Thomas  Curwen,  of  Workington,  and  Sir  John  Pennington." 

"In  fair  order,"  continues  our  indefatigable  Herald,  "did 
Glueen  Margaret  enter  York,  her  minstrels  singing,  her  trumpets 
and  sackbuts  playing,  and  the  high  woods  resounding  ;  bamiers 
and  bandroles  waving,  coats  of  arms  unrolled  to  the  light  of  the 
sunsetting,  rich  maces  in  hand,  and  brave  horsemen  curveting 
and  bounding." 

Our  Herald's  description  of  Margaret's  entry  into  York  would 
make  an  antiquarian  reader  believe  that  he  was  familiar 
with  the  beautiful  couplets  of  the  historical  poet  of  Scotland, 
Barbour — ' 

"  There  were  banners  right  fairly  flowing, 
And  pensils  to  the  winds  glowing, 
For  Sol  was  brigli-t  and  shining  clear, 
On  armors  that  high  burnished  were, 
So  blazing  in  the  sun  liis  beam, 
That  all  the  land  seemed  in  a  gleam." 

York  was  crowded  with  the  gentry  from  the  East  and  West 
Eidings.  My  Lord  of  Northumberland  and  my  Lord  Mayor  did 
their  best  to  make  dueen  Margaret's  reception  expensive  and 
splendid  ;  but  as  they  did  not  produce  any  striking  variation  in 
their  pageantry,  it  need  not  be  dwelt  upon.  The  young  dueen 
was  received  in  the  palace  of  the  Archbishop  of  York  after  her 
fatiguing  day  was  done.  In  the  morning  that  prelate  led  her  to 
high  mass  in  York  Minster.  Margaret  was  gloriously  attired  m 
cloth  of  gold  on  this  occasion,  her  gown  being  baited  with  a  pre- 
cious girdle,  studded  with  colored  gems ;   the  ends  of  her  belt 

1  John  Barbour,  Archdeacon  of  Aberdeen,  wrote  the  great  actions  of 
Robert  Bruce  in  the  time  of  his  son  David,  II.  Many  noble  passages  occur 
in  his  poems ;  and  it  is  well  worth  encountering  his  rugged  orthography  to 
read  them.  He  was  just  before  the  era  of  Chaucer,  to  whom  he  is  perhaps 
superior  as  an  original  author.  It  was  Barbour  who  wrote  that  grand 
apostrophe  often  quoted — "  Oh  Freedom  is  a  noble  thing !" 


30  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

hung  down  to  the  ground  ;  her  necklace  was  very  splendid,  full 
of  Orient  stones.  As  she  went  from  the  palace  to  the  Minster, 
the  Countess  of  Surrey  bore  her  train  ;  and  after  them  followed 
her  ladies,  all  very  richly  attired  "  in  goodly  gowns,  tied  with 
great  gold  chains,  or  girdle-belts,  with  the  ends  hanging  down  to 
the  earth." 

When  mass  was  done,  Clueen  Margaret  gave  reception  in  the 
great  chamber  of  the  Archbishop's  palace,  holding  a  drawing- 
room  as  it  would  be  called  in  modern  phraseology. 

'•  Here  my  lady  the  Countess  of  Northumberland  was  pre- 
sented to  her,  being  well  accompanied  with  knights  and  gentle- 
men. The  young  Glueen  of  Scotland  kissed  her  for  the  welcom- 
ing she  gave  her."  ^ 

Dinner  was  set  in  the  Glueen's  own  chamber  ;  and  as  her  Grace 
passed  to  it,  trumpets  and  other  instruments  rang  in  the  ancient 
manner,  their  sounding  lasting  during  the  whole  time  she  sat  at 
meat. 

The  Glueen  departed  from  the  city  of  York  on  the  18th  day  of 
July,  in  very  fine  order,  and  with  company  richly  appointed — 
the  Archbishops  and  Bishops,  the  Lord  Mayor  of  York,  all  his 
aldermen,  and  the  sheriffs,  attending  on  her.  The  streets  and 
windows  so  full  of  people  that  it  was  a  marvel  to  see  them. 
Without  the  walls,  the  company  from  York  took  leave  of  her ; 
and  at  the  same  time  the  Bishop  of  Norwich,  and  the  lords  of 
Kent,  of  Hastings,  of  Strange,  and  of  Willoughby,  withdrew  from 
her  train. 

The  royal  bride  then  took  the  road  to  Newburgh,  at  the  priory 
of  which  place  she  was  received  by  the  religious,  handsomely 
vested.  At  the  gate  of  their  church  they  presented  the  cross  for 
her  salutation.  The  same  evening  she  arrived  at  Allerton  ;  and 
at  her  entry  she  was  welcomed  by  the  Vicar  and  "  his  folk  of  the 
church,  with  the  Carmelites  in  procession  ;  and  the  Bishop  of 
Murray,  as  before,  gave  her  the  cross  to  kiss."  The  next  day  she 
departed  from  Allerton.  She  was  met  by  the  Lord  Lumley  and 
his  son,  accompanied  by  many  gentlemen  and  folks  arrayed  in 
their  livery,  well  mounted,  to  the  number  of  fourscore  horsemen. 

"  Before  the  (Xueen  arrived  at  Hexham,  she  met  Sir  Ralph 
Bowes  and  Sir  William  Aylton,  with  a  fair  company  in  their 
liveries ;  and  in  Hexham,  without  the  gate,  she  was  received  by 
1  Narrative  of  the  Somerset  Herald,  in  Leland's  Collectanea. 


MAHGARET     TUDOR.  31 

the  abbess  and  her  religieuses,  bearing  their  cross.  It  was  then 
the  Bishop  of  Durham  who  handed  her  the  cross  to  kiss — a  cere- 
mony which  seems  to  have  been  of  constant  occurrence.  Her 
bed  was  prepared  that  night  at  Darnton.  Two  miles  before  she 
drew  nigh  to  the  to\vn,  Sir  William  Bulmer,  Sheriff  of  the  lord- 
ship of  Durham,  met  her  in  company  with  Sir  William  Ewers, 
and  many  people  of  honor  of  that  country,  who,  in  brave  order, 
convoyed  her  to  Darnton.  At  the  gate  of  the  church  stood  richly 
vested  the  Vicar  and  his  folk  of  the  church ;  and  she  was  led  to 
the  manor  of  the  Bishop  of  Durham  to  sleep  that  night." 

"  The  next  noon  being  the  20th  of  July,  the  Q.ueen,  a  mile 
from  Durham,  was  encountered  by  Sir  Richard  Stanley,  and  my 
Lady  his  wife,  with  folk  in  their  livery,  on  horseback,  to  the 
number  of  fifty ;  and  the  bride  Glueen  prepared  herself  to  enter 
the  said  town,  very  richly  arrayed,  in  her  usual  manner.  And 
all  her  escort  attired  themselves  very  grandly.  As  for  the  Earl 
of  Northumberland,  he  wore  a  gown  of  goodly  tinsel  furred  with 
ermines.  He  was  mounted  on  a  fair  courser,  his  harness  was  of 
goldsmith's  work  :  all  over  '  that  same '  was  sewn  small  bells, 
making  a  melodious  noise  when  he  moved  ;  and  he  did  not  spare 
gambades.  His  gentlemen  of  honor  were  dressed  in  long  jackets 
of  orfavery,  very  richly  wrought  with  his  devices,  as  were  all  his 
folk."  In  short,  our  Somerset  Herald  indubitably  considered  my 
lord  of  Northumberland  at  once  the  great  man  and  the  beau  of 
the  bridal  escort ;  nor  is  he  ever  weary  of  describing  his  tinsel 
jackets  and  gold  gowns,  the  gambades  he  perpetrated,  or  the 
little  belles  (campanes)  that  chimed,  sweetly  tuned  in  unison, 
whenever  those  equestrian  capers  were  cut.  He  viewed  this  young 
lord  with  favor,  perhaps,  because  he  entertained  an  officer-at-arms 
for  the  especial  service  of  his  noble  line,  called  Northumberland 
Herald,  who  gave  his  quaint  assistance  on  this  grand  progress. 
My  lord  of  Northumberland,  thus  replete  with  bells  and  tinsel,  in 
the  spring-time  of  his  youth,  was  no  other  than  that  solemn  and 
consequential  personage  whose  proceedings  in  his  old  age  have 
been  so  graphically  described  by  Cavendish,  who  draws  no  very 
pleasant  picture  of  my  lord  of  Northumberland,  when  he  nipped 
in  the  bud  the  passion  of  his  son,  Lord  Percy,  with  the  fair  maid 
of  honor,  Anne  Boleyn. 

Q,ueen  Margaret  lodged  in  the  castle  at  Durham  under  the 
immediate  protection  of  the  Bishop  ;  and  she  reposed  there  until 


32  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

the  24tli  of  July,  when  commenced  her  journey  to  Newcastle. 
She  made  her  toilet  afresh  a  mile  before  she  entered  that  town, 
in  which  her  reception  was  unusually  brilliant ;  for,  besides  the 
religious  processions,  with  their  banners  and  crosses  upon  the 
bridge-end-gate,  were  many  children  vested  in  white  surplices, 
who  sang  melodious  hymns,  and  played  on  instruments  of  divers 
sorts.  The  streets  were  hung  with  tapestry,  and  all  the  ''window- 
loops  and  ship  tops  were  full  of  people  ;"  and  "there  were  gen- 
tlemen and  gentlewomen  in  such  great  numbers  it  was  a  pleasure 
to  see.  However,  no  artillery  or  ordnance  was  shot  off" — a  re- 
markable omission  as  our  Herald  thought.  "  But  in  state  and 
fair  array  was  the  Q.ueen  brought  to  her  lodging  at  the  Friars 
Austin ;  and  when  she  had  entered,  every  man  departed  to  his 
own  dwelling." 

The  festival  of  St.  James,  the  patron  and  name-saint  of  Q,ueen 
Margaret's  wedded  lord,  was  very  gayly  celebrated  at  Newcastle, 
that  25th  of  July.  "  She  abode  all  day  in  the  town,  and  was  at 
the  church-mass  nobly  accompanied." 

In  the  evening  the  Earl  of  Northumberland  treated  her  with 
a  goodly  banquet :  all  the  gentry  of  the  neighboring  counties 
attended  it.  Thither  came  Lord  Dacre  of  the  north  with  a 
mighty  train  in  his  livery;  "and  there  were  dances,  sports,  and 
songs,  with  good  cheer  of  ypocras,  sucres  (sweetmeats),  and  other 
meats  of  many  delicious  manners,  the  entertainment  lasting  till 
midnight." 

The  good  cheer  at  Newcastle  detained  Margaret  till  the  26th 
of  July,  when  she  again  commenced  her  progress.  She  slept  at 
Morpeth  Castle  on  her  way  to  Alnwick.  "  Two  miles  from  that 
place  the  Earl  of  Northumberland  brought  her  through  his  park, 
where  she  killed  a  buck  with  her  bow ;  after  which  exploit  her 
Grace  was  conveyed  to  the  Castle,  and  was  warmly  welcomed  by 
her  noble  host,  who  made  her  very  good  cheer."  Margaret  re- 
mained the  whole  of  the  next  day,  the  28th  of  July,  at  Alnwick 
Castle,  "herself  and  company  well  cherished,"  as  Somerset  Her- 
ald witnesses,  by  the  Lord  of  Northumberland. 

The  bridal  train  was  now  on  the  point  of  entering  Scotland, 
the  renowned  fortress  of  Berwick  alone  intersecting  their  line  of 
march.  Q,ueen  Margaret's  entry  therein  was  more  than  usually 
pompous.  She  was  received  at  the  Castle  gate  by  the  Lady 
Darcy,  wife  to  the  Captain  of  Berwick. 


MARGARET     TUDOR,  33 

Much  sweet  minstrelsy,  and  excellent  good  cheer,  were  provi- 
ded for  her  Grace's  reception  by  the  Governor  or  Captain  of  Ber- 
wick, She  was  entertained  with  "  courses  of  chase  in  the  inclo- 
sure  of  the  walls,  and  recreated  with  the  sports  of  great  dogs  and 
bears  tugging  each  other,  and  loud  shooting  of  artillery," — amuse- 
ments more  suitable  to  the  warriors  who  kept  securely  the  fierce- 
ly-contested stronghold  of  Berwick-upon-Tweed,  than  to  a  young 
lady  in  her  fourteenth  year. 

Besides  witnessing  these  refined  entertainments,  the  royal  train 
was  occupied,  during  two  days'  sojourn  in  Berwick,  in  prepara- 
tions, in  order  to  make  the  best  possible  appearance  in  Scotland, 

At  length,  being  rested  and  cleansed  from  the  toils  and  stains 
of  travel,  and  all  attired  in  new  garments,  the  northern  gate  of 
Berwick  was  flung  open,  and  the  bridal  escort  began  to  defile 
from  under  its  grim  portals  into  the  northern  kingdom. 

Margaret  herself  sat  in  her  litter  under  the  Scotch  gate  of 
Berwick,  while  the  van  of  the  noble  chivalry  of  the  Border  pre- 
ceded her  cortege.  She  was  in  full  dress,  covered  with  glistening 
apparel  and  sparkling  gems ;  and  the  state  litter,  decked  like  an 
ambulating  throne,  was  hung  with  its  richest  furniture.  Her 
white  palfrey,  trapped  with  its  gayest  housings,  was  near  her 
carriage,  led  by  her  master  of  the  horse,  Sir  Thomas  Wortley, 
"  The  captain  of  Berwick,  and  his  wiff',  my  Lady  Darcy,"  were 
in  attendance  on  the  young  Q,ueen,  as  they  were  to  accompany 
her  to  Edinburgh. 

Immediately  before  the  royal  litter  sat,  mounted  on  their 
steeds,  Johannes,  the  minstrel  of  Glueen  Margaret,  and  his  com- 
panions— among  whom  must  have  been  the  company  of  players 
enumerated  by  the  Herald  among  the  officials  that  Princess 
imported  into  Scotland,  Her  chief  trumpeter,  Harry  of  Glaston- 
bury, and  his  mates,  headed  the  procession  ;  and  their  notes 
rang  high  in  the  vigorous  performance  of  their  office,  on  the 
important  occasion  of  ushering  their  Princess  into  the  land  whose 
throne  she  came  to  share.  Then  were  ranked  the  officers-of- 
arms,  or  heralds,  among  whom  we  entreat  our  readers  to  remem- 
ber that  Master  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  our  faithful  and 
pains-taking  chronicler  of  all  these  picturesque  circumstances, 
was  one. 

The  Serjeants  of  mace,  the  immediate  protectors  of  the  non- 
combatant  jpart  of  the  procession,  brought  up  the  rear  of  the 

B* 


34  MARGARET     TUDOR 

young  dueen  of  Scotland's  cortege,  which  was  well  guarded 
with  English  Border  troopers,  to  the  amount  of  two  thousand 
men-at-ai;ms — a  force  which  did  not  often  make  an  egress  with 
quite  such  peaceful  intentions  through  the  northern  gate  of  Ber- 
wick ;  but  rather  with  the  feelings  excited  by  the  favorite  trum- 
pet mot  of  the  Marches — 

"  And  loud  the  warden's  war-note  rang, 
Oh  !  '  Wha  dare  meddle  with  me  ?' " 

The  Earls  of  Surrey  and  Northumberland,  with  their  squires 
and  men-at-arms,  having  led  the  way  through  Berwick  north 
gate — preceding  the  ecclesiastical  processions  of  the  Archbishop 
of  York  and  the  Bishop  of  Durham — then  the  Lord  Dacre,  and 
the  Lords  Scrope,  Gray,  Latimer,  and  a  great  number  of  young 
nobles  and  squires,  followed  the  prelates.  Our  Herald  dwells, 
with  characteristic  unction,  on  the  costume  of  these  great  per- 
sonages, especially  the  silver  and  gold  bells  worn  on  their  horse- 
trappings. 

"All  were  well  appointed  in  their  devices,  and  displayed  in 
their  attiring  cloth  of  gold  and  other  rich  raiment.  Their  horses 
frisked  under  them  of  their  own  accord.  Some  had  silver  bells, 
others  golden  bells  sewn  on  their  harness  ;  and  these  little 
campanes  made  a  sweet  chiming  when  they  took  leaps  and 
gambades  at  their  good  pleasure."  Q,ueen  Margaret  and  her 
various  attendants  followed  this  chivalric  escort  through  Berwick 
north  gate,  and  the  rear  division  of  the  Border  army  surrounded 
and  guarded  her  equipage  and  those  of  her  train.  "  Such,"  con- 
tinues our  heraldic  chronicler,  John  Young,  enthusiastically, 
"  was  the  fair  order  of  the  bride  Q^ueen's  entry  into  Scotland ; 
and  it  was  a  joy  not  only  to  see,  but  to  hear." 

Lammermuir  was  the  first  stage  that  dueen  Margaret  made 
in  her  new  country.  At  Lamberton  Kirk  the  Archbishop  of 
Glasgow,  with  a  grand  company  of  Scottish  nobles,  were  waiting 
to  receive  their  Q/Ueen.  But  our  herald,  John  Young,  can  not 
refrain  from  noting  his  disappointment  at  the  absence  ''  of  gold 
and  tinsel  on  their  doublets,  which  were  but  made  of  good  velvet 
cloth,  or  camlet," — far  more  appropriate  to  the  masculine 
character,  it  will  be  allowed,  in  those  days. 

"  However,  my  lord  the  Bishop  of  Murray  strongly  did  his 
devoir  at  the  meeting  of  the  Scotch  and  English  ;  and  there 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  35 

were  five  trumpets  or  clarions  of  tlie  King  of  Scotland  that  blew 
up  right  merrily  at  the  coming  of  the  said  dueen :  the  which 
melody  was  good  to  see  and  hear." 

"  The  lords,  knights,  and  gentlemen  of  the  English  escort, 
defiled  before  the  said  Scotchmen,  making  gambades  ;  and  when 
the  Glueen  followed  with  her  procession,  the  Archbishop,  the 
Bishop  of  Murray,  and  the  Scottish  lords  advanced  toward  her, 
and  there,  kneeling  down  on  the  grass,  made  the  receiving  of  her. 
There  were  in  presence  of  the  Q.ueen,  the  Archbishop  of  York, 
the  Bishop  of  Durham,  and  the  Earl  of  Surrey." 

"  The  pavilion  prepared  for  recreation  was  then  opened  for  the 
dueen  of  Scotland.  Near  it  stood  other  three  officers — one  for 
her  pantry,  the  other  for  her  buttery,  and  the  third  for  her 
kitchen — ready  to  officiate  to  her  Grace  in  their  several  voca- 
tions. The  dueen  herself  was  then  brought  in  state  to  the 
pavilion  arranged  for  her  refreshment.  When  she  came  nigh  to 
it  she  was  helped  to  alight ;  and  she  was  kissed  by  the  said  lords, 
and  by  them  led  therein,  when  no  one  entered  excepting  the  said 
lords  and  the  Q,ueen's  ladies."  Within  the  pavilion  was  a 
Scottish  dame  of  high  rank  clothed  in  scarlet,  "  with  gentle- 
women appointed  after  their  guise,  who  had  brought  from  King 
James,  for  the  Glueen,  some  new  fruits." 

The  officers  of  the  royal  bouche  made  right  good  cheer.  There 
was  plenty  of  bread  and  wine  dispensed,  and  every  one  was 
content.  The  Glueen's  solemn  reception  by  her  husband's  deputa- 
tion was  quickly  followed  by  the  ceremonial  of  farewell,  which 
she  had  to  take  of  the  chivalry  of  the  English  Border — her 
escort  from  Berwick  north  gate.  Margaret  mounted  again  on 
her  palfrey  and  sat  thereon,  surrounded  by  her  suite  ;  while  each 
commander,  at  the  head  of  his  troopers,  defiled  before  her  on 
their  return  to  the  south,  each  making  before  her  his  "  devoir  of 
adieu."  My  lord  of  Northumberland,  the  leader  of  the  feudal 
army,  Lord  Scrope^  the  elder,  and  Lord  Dacre,  with  other  lords, 
took  of  her  their  conge,  and  departed  for  England  with  many 
leaps  and  gambades,  and  feats  of  noble  horsemanship.  Above  a 
thousand  of  the  chivalry  of  the  Scottish  Marches  came  instead,  to 
guard  the  person  of  the  Glueen.  Thus  escorted,  Glueen  Margaret 
quitted  the  church  of  the  great  sheep-feeding  plain  of  Scotland, 

Lamberton  Kirk  is  now  a  melancholy  ruin,  surrounded  by 
dismal  trees.     Tradition  affirms  that  Margaret  and  James  were 


36  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

married  therC)  and  that,  as  the  parish  priest  made  a  dispensation 
of  banns  in  their  case,  the  King  gave  the  like  privilege  to  every 
one  else.  But  tradition  has  mistaken  the  place  of  the  royal 
meeting. 

The  Som-erset  Herald's  narrative  thus  proceeds : — "  That 
afternoon's  stage  '  led  to  Fastcastle,  where  she  was  destined  to 
bedward.  Her  train  was  lodged  in  the  Abbey  of  Coldingham, 
but  the  Glueen  herself  passed  the  first  night  of  her  arrival  in  her 
new  dominions  in  one  of  the  most  extraordinary  fortresses  in  the 
island" — for  such  was  Fastcastle,  which  in  part  belonged  to  her 
own  dower  settlement. 

In  those  days  of  semi-civilization,  it  was  a  breach  of  etiquette, 
as  it  is  now  among  the  Orientals  and  the  North  American 
Indians,  for  exalted  personages  to  testify  surprise  at  any  thing 
unusual  which  presented  itself  before  their  eyes ;  therefore  it 
can  not  be  expected  that  Margaret's  herald  chronicler  should 
mention  her  natural  astonishment  at  the  romantic  scene  which 
now  opened  to  her  view.  Yet,  reared  as  she  had  been  among 
the  soft  meads  of  Shene,  and  never  accustomed  to  raise  her  eyes 
to  higher  ground  than  Richmond  Hill,  she  must  have  been 
struck  with  her  progress  through  the  bold  defile  of  Cockburnspath, 
anciently  Colbrand  the  giant's  path — for  it  is  connected  with  the 
earliest  superstitions  of  the  island.  Royal  letters  in  those  days 
were  devoted  to  other  purposes  than  recording  impressions  of  the 
beauties  of  nature ;  no  trace  of  any  such  feeling  can  be  found  in 
Margaret  Tudor' s  innumerable  epistles.  Still  her  eyes  must  have 
rested,  as  ours  have  done,  on  the  wild  and  wondrous  scenery 
through  which  she  was  brought  "  to  bedward"  that  night. 

Fastcastle  is  no  other  than  the  veritable  Wolf-Crag  Tower, 
celebrated  in  Scott's  Bride  of  Lammermoor  as  the  abode  of  the 
Master  of  Ravenswood.  It  is  seated  on  a  lofty  promontory, 
which  commands  the  lonely  indented  bay  of  which  St.  Abb's 
Head  forms  the  extreme  point  to  the  right,  with  a  wild  array  of 
rifted  rocks  terminating  in  the  Wolf-Crag,  which  soars  high  in 
mid  air  above  the  fortress — black,  gloomy,  and  inaccessible. 
The  way  by  which  the  southern  bride  and  her  company  reached 
this  rugged  resting-place  lay  across  the  Lammermuir,  several 
miles  of  wild  heath  and  treacherous  bog,  which  no  stranger 
might  traverse  in  safety  without  guides  well  acquainted  with  the 
'  Chambers'  Picture  of  Scotland,  vol.  i.  p.  41. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  37 

track.  Before  they  entered  on  this  pass,  they  had  to  descend  a 
hill  which  was  so  steep  and  precipitous  that,  even  within  the 
last  century,  it  was  customary  for  the  passengers  by  the  mail- 
coach  between  Berwick  and  Edinburgh  to  alight  and  cross  it  on 
foot,  while  the  carriage  was  taken  oiY  the  wheels  and  carried 
over  by  a  relay  of  men,  stationed  on  the  spot  for  that  purpose. 
Of  course  the  roads  were  not  better  in  the  beginning  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  Fastcastle  is  approached  by  one  or  two 
descents  and  ascents  of  this  kind,  and  is  separated  from  the 
mainland  by  a  cleft  between  the  rocks,  which  has  to  be  crossed 
by  a  natural  bridge  formed  of  a  ledge  of  rock,  without  rail  or 
guard,  with  the  vexed  billows  boiling  and  thundering  sixty  feet 
below. 

When  the  young  Tudor  Q.ueen  made  her  passage  across  this 
Al  Arat  of  the  Caledonian  coast,  she  had  the  German  Ocean  be- 
fore her,  which  beats  against  the  rocky  battlements  and  defenses 
with  which  the  basement  of  the  castle  is  surrounded.  One  of 
these  masses  resembles  the  upturned  keel  of  a  huge  man-of-war 
stranded  among  other  fragments,  which,  like  the  relics  of  a  former 
world,  lay  scattered  at  the  foot  of  the  precipice,  with  the  wild 
breakers  rushing  through  their  clefts,  forming  a  gTa,ndJet-d'eau, 
and  tossing  the  light  feathery  foam  on  high.  The  larger  rocks 
are  the  haunt  of  innumerable  sea-birds.  Fastcastle  had  formerly 
been  the  stronghold  of  some  of  those  ferocious  feudal  pirates 
who  may  be  regarded  as  the  buccaneers  of  the  Caledonian  coast. 
Many  a  bloody  deed  had  been  perpetrated  within  its  isolated 
and  inaccessible  circuit  ;  but  the  festive  solemnities  and  cere- 
monials that  surrounded  the  royal  bride  allowed  no  leisure  or 
opportunity  for  whispers  of  the  dark  tales  and  romantic  traditions 
connected  with  its  history.  Thoroughly  tired  must  she  have 
been  with  her  long  journey,  and  the  onerous  task  of  playing  the 
dueen,  instead  of  tossing  her  ball  and  joining  in  the  loud  laugh- 
ter and  jocund  sports  of  the  companions  of  that  gay  and  happy 
childhood,  from  which  she  had  suddenly  been  compelled  to  step 
into  the  more  than  womanly  cares  and  responsibilities  of  a 
crowned  head  in  a  land  of  strangers. 

Lord  and  Lady  Home,  the  castellan  and  castellaine  of  Fast- 
castle, received  the  young  Glueen  with  the  utmost  homage.  The 
lady  was  connected  with  Margaret's  after-life,  when  she  traversed 
this  district  again. 


38  MARGARET     TUt)Oil. 

With  the  morning  light  Margaret  rejoined  her  escort  at  Cold- 
inghara.  It  appears  that,  as  she  proceeded  further  into  Scotland, 
pioneers  preceded  her  on  her  progress,  leveling  and  smoothing 
roads  to  facilitate  the  advance  of  her  little  army.  At  least  such 
seems  the  import  of  the  quaint  vi^ords  of  Master  Young,  Somerset 
Herald — "  And  through  the  country,  in  some  places,  were  made 
by  force  ways  for  the  (Queen's  carriages." 

"  Great  numbers  of  people,"  he  adds,  "  assembled  to  see  their 
Glueen,  and  lined  the  wayside  v/here  we  passed.  They  brought 
with  them  plenty  of  drink,  and  served  with  it  eveiy  one  that 
wished  for  it,  if  vso  be  that  person  was  willing  to  pay  for  the 
same."  ^ 

On  the  road  to  Haddington  the  royal  cortege  left  the  strong 
fortress  of  Dunbal'  to  the  right,  nevertheless  it  saluted  as  the 
Q.ueen  passed,  and  "  shot  oft^  loud  ordnance  for  the  love  of 
her."  ' 

As  the  evening  of  August  2d  closed  in,  Gtueen  Margaret  and 
her  ladies  were  received  at  the  gate  of  the  convent  of  nuns  near 
Haddington,  by  the  Abbess  and  her  holy  sisterhood.  Of  course 
the  lords  and  gentles  of  the  royal  escort  had  to  seek  another 
abiding-place  ;  they  slept  at  the  Gray  Friars  of  Haddington. 
Great  satisfaction  is  expressed  in  the  Herald's  Journal  at  the 
good  cheer  the  bridal  train  had  had  from  both  communities. 
Early  on  August  3d,  Q^ueen  Margaret  and  her  people  were  all 
astir  ;  the  procession  being  put  in  fair  order,  they  passed  through 
the  town  of  Haddington  to  the  admiration  of  all  beholders. 

The  castle  of  Acquick,  or  Acqueth,^  not  far  from  Edinburgh, 
was  to  be  the  place  of  their  noontide  meal.  It  was  the  resi- 
dence of  the  Earl  of  Morton,  one  of  the  greatest  nobles  of  Scot- 
land ;  and  as  they  were  to  learn  there  the  plans  of  the  King  of 
Scotland  for  future  arrangements,  it  was  felt  that  their  personal 
appointments  ought  to  be  cared  for,  and  rendered  proof  against 
critical  inspection.  The  whole  caravanserai,  therefore,  came  to 
a  halt  by  the  wayside,  half  a  mile  from  Dalkeith.  The  ladies 
held  a  cabinet-council  round  the  royal  litter,  and  finally  they 
equipped  their  little  Glueen  in  a  new  fresh  dress,  which  they 

^  Leland's  Collectanea,  vol.  iv.  p.  202.  Young's  Journal.  MS.  of  Anstis, 
Garter  King. 

^  See  her  Letters,  vol.  v.  State  Papers. 
^  So  written ;  but  he  means  Dalkeith. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  39 

deemed  very  magnificent.  Every  body  likewise  dressed,  and  set 
themselves  off  to  the  best  advantage,  and  then  took  their  appoint- 
ed places.  At  last  the  whole  cortege  moved  forward  toward 
Dalkeith  Palace  gates,  where  their  reception  was  very  solemn 
indeed. 

The  Earl  of  Morton,  attended  by  many  gentlemen,  was  stand- 
ing at  the  castle  gateway.  When  the  Q,ueen  arrived  he  wel- 
comed her  "as  lady  and  mistress,"  presenting  her  at  the  same 
time  with  the  keys  of  the  castle.  Between  the  two  gateways  of 
the  quadrangle  stood  Lady  Morton,  the  castellaine  of  Dalkeith, 
surrounded  by  a  number  of  ladies  and  gentlemen.  The  whole 
group  Imelt  down  as  their  Glueen  approached,  who  very  graciously 
went  to  the  Lady  Morton,  raised  her  up,  and  kissed  her. 

The  dueen  was  conducted  by  Lady  Morton  in  grand  state  to 
her  suite  of  apartments  within  the  castle,  where  every  thing  was 
in  fair  array,  although  the  building  was  a  strong  place,  meant 
for  purposes  of  defense.^ 

Scarcely  was  the  royal  bride  in  possession  of  her  chamber  and 
withdrawing-room,  when  a  hurrying  sound  in  the  quadrangle 
announced  that  some  unexpected  event  had  happened.  The 
tumult  ran  through  the  castle,  till  it  reached  the  ante-room  of 
the  royal  suite,  where  the  cry  soon  greeted  the  ear  of  Margaret — 
"  The  King,  the  King  of  Scotland  has  arrived  I" 

1  Sir  Ralph  Sadler,  in  his  Dispatches  to  the  King  of  England,  Henry 
VIII.,  in  1543,  mentions  Dalkeith  Castle  as  a  place  of  prodigious  strength, 
in  possession  of  the  Earl  of  Morton.  He  says  the  donjon  was  called  the 
Lion's  Den. 


CHAPTER    II. 


SUMMARY. 
First  interview  between  Margaret  Tudor  and  James  IV.— She  is  alarmed  by  a  conflagra- 
tion— Her  grief  for  the  loss  of  her  palfrey — She  is  removed  from  Dalkeith  to  Newbattle 
— King's  visit  to  her — Her  ball  and  concert — Her  delight  at  the  King's  vocal  and  musical 
skill — He  kneels  while  she  sings  and  plays — Their  courtship  at  Newbattle — Queen  Mar- 
garet's slate  entrance  into  Edinburgh — Riding  on  a  pillion  behind  her  husband — He 
conducts  her  to  her  apartments  in  Holyrood — Presents  her  household  to  her — Her  mar- 
riage in  Holyrood  Chapel — Her  dress  and  ceremonials — Her  Epithalamium — Queen 
Margaret's  largesse — Redeems  her  wedding-gown  next  day — She  goes  in  state  to  the 
High  Church,  Edinburgli — Tourneys  in  her  honor — Sits  in  full  dress  at  her  bay-window, 
Holyrood — Sees  a  play — Her  complaining  letter  to  her  father — Her  farewell  festival  to 
her  English  escort — Her  attendants,  court,  and  minstrels — Birth  of  her  first  child — Dan- 
gerous illness — First  causes  of  jealousy — Her  pilgrimage  to  St.  Ninian's — Death  of  her 
son,  &c. — Birth  and  loss  of  her  eldest  daughter — Queen  is  involved  in  disputes  with  her 
father  and  husband— Death  of  her  father,  Henry  VII.,  and  of  her  grandmother — Birth 
of  her  son  Arthur — She  claims  the  legacy  of  her  deceased  brother,  Arthur,  Prince  of 
Wales — Death  of  her  infant  son — Her  pilgrimage  to  St.  Duthois — Birth  of  her  son 
(James  V.),  April  11,  1512— Naval  war  between  Henry  VIII.  and  her  husband — Her  dis- 
putes about  her  legacy — Interview  with  her  brother's  envoy.  Dr.  West — Shows  him  her 
beautiful  boy — Sir  David  Lindsay  has  charge  of  her  son — Her  angry  letter  to  Henry 
VIII. — Grief  for  the  war  with  England — Disturbs  her  husband  with  her  dreams — Her 
jealousy  of  the  Queen  of  France — Supernatural  impositions,  &,c.  &c. — King  James  con- 
fides his  treasure  to  her  keeping — Leaves  her  the  regency  in  his  will — Queen  retires  to 
Linlithgow— Death  of  her  husband  at  Floddon. 

James  IY.  came  in  thus  unexpectedly  to  relieve  his  young 
bride  from  the  anxiety  of  a  formal  introduction  to  him  in  the 
midst  of  tedious  state  ceremonies,  with  the  eyes  of  a  multitude 
fixed  upon  them.  He  wished  to  make  acquaintance  with  her 
before  such  ordeal  commenced  ;  and  if  his  bride  had  a  heart 
worth  the  winning,  it  was  evident  the  King  of  Scotland  thought 
it  most  likely  to  be  won  when  they  were  disencumbered  of  the 
stiff  stateliness  ever  surrounding  royalty  on  public  days. 

He  entered  the  presence  of  Margaret  Tudor  with  his  hawking- 
lure  flung  over  his  shoulder,  dressed  simply  in  a  velvet  jacket; 
his  hair  and  beard  curUng  naturally,  were  rather  long,^  his  com- 

1  Leland'3  Collectanea.  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  who  was  present, 
and  describes  the  dress  and  appearance  of  James  I Y.  as  he  saw  him  that 
day,  August  3,  1503. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  41 

plexion  glowing  from  the  manly  exercise  he  had  just  been  en- 
gaged in.  He  was  the  handsomest  sovereign  in  Europe,  the  black 
eyes  and  hair  of  his  elegant  father,  James  III.,  being  softened  in 
his  resemblance  to  the  blonde  beauty  of  his  Danish  mother.  Sir 
Walter  Scott  has  drawn  James  IV. 's  portrait  co7i  amore,  and  has 
not  exaggerated  the  likeness — 

"  For  hazel  was  his  eagle  eye, 
And  auburn  of  the  darkest  dye 

His  short  curled  beard  and  hair. 
Light  was  his  footstep  in  the  dance, 

And  firm  his  stirrup  in  the  lists  ; 
And  oh,  he  had  that  merry  glance 

Which  seldom  lady's  heart  resists." 

The  young  Gtueen  met  her  royal  lord  at  the  doorway  of  her 
great  chamber.  The  King  of  Scotland  uncovered  his  head  and 
made  a  deep  obeisance  to  her,  while  she  made  a  lowly  reverence 
to  him.  He  then  took  her  hand  and  kissed  her,  and  saluted  all 
her  ladies  by  kissing  them.  It  was  noticed  that  he  welcomed 
the  chivalric  Earl  of  Surrey  with  especial  cordiality. 

"  Then  the  King  of  Scotland  took  the  Q,ueen  on  one  side,  and 
they  communed  together  for  a  long  space.  She  held  good  man- 
ner (was  unembarrassed)  ;  and  the  King  remained  bare-headed 
during  the  time  they  conversed,  and  many  courtesies  passed  be- 
tween them.  Incontinent  {immediately)  the  board  was  set  and 
served.  The  King  and  Glueen  washed  their  hands  with  humble 
reverence,  and  after  that  set  them  down  at  table  together. 

"  After  supper  they  washed  again,  loith  the  reverences,^''  which 
we  opine  to  have  been  an  elaborate  series  of  bows  and  genuflex- 
ions performed  with  due  solemnity.  "  The  minstrels  began  to 
blow,  then  Glueen  Margaret  danced,  accompanied  by  my  Lady 
Surrey.  This  done,  King  James  took  leave  of  her,  for  it  was 
late  ;  and  he  went  to  his  bed  at  Edinburgh  very  well  content  at 
so  pleasant  a  meeting,  and  that  he  had  found  the  fair  company 
so  well  together."  ^ 

Such  happy  order  of  affairs  did  not,  however,  last  through 
that  night.  The  young  Glueen  was  roused  from  her  first  sleep 
with  the  terrific  glare  of  flames ;  a  conflagration  was  raging 
within  the  walls  of  Dalkeith,  and  no  little  alarm  existed  for  some 

^  Herald's  Journal.    Leland's  Appendix. 


42  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

time,  lest  fatal  injury  to  all  its  inhabitants  should  ensue.  At 
length  the  fire  was  subdued,  which  had  broken  out  in  the  stables  : 
these  were  utterly  consumed,  and  every  thing  in  them.  The 
Glueen's  two  white  palfreys  were  burnt ;  and  as  one  of  them  was 
much  beloved  by  her,  she  spent  the  next  morning  in  tears  for 
its  loss. 

When  King  James  heard  of  this  misfortune  he  sent  a  consoling 
message  to  the  Glueen,  and  entreated  her,  as  Dalkeith  had  proved 
thus  unfortunate,  that  she  would  remove  to  Newbattle  Castle,  at 
a  short  distance  from  it,  where  every  thing  had  been  prepared  for 
her  entertainment  for  four  days.^  Thither  dueen  Margaret  re- 
moved with  her  train  the  afternoon  of  August  4  ;  but  she  still 
remained  inconsolable  for  the  loss  of  her  favorite  animals.  The 
King  sent  word  that  he  would  pay  her  a  visit  at  Newbattle  that 
afternoon  for  the  purpose  of  comforting  her ;  "  upon  which  the 
Earl  of  Surrey,  the  Archbishop  of  York,  and  several  other  Eng- 
lish lords,  rode  forth  intending  to  meet  the  King  of  Scotts." 

But  James  had  taken  a  different  road  to  Newbattle  Castle,  and 
entered  it  privately.  He  came  to  the  Q^ueen's  drawing-room 
with  a  few  persons,  "  and  found  her  playing  at  cards."  At  his 
entry,  "  the  Q,ueen,  rising,  advanced  to  receive  him  very  gladly, 
of  her  good-will  kissing  him.*  After  that  the  King  of  Scot- 
land gave  salute  to  all  her  ladies.  He  was  dressed  in  a  black 
velvet  jacket,  bordered  vidth  crimson  velvet  and  edged  with  white 
fur." 

While  Margaret  and  James  were  communing  together,  the 
lords  who  had  been  to  meet  him  returned  from  their  fruitless  ride. 
"  The  King  did  reverence,  with  his  bonnet  in  his  hand,  to  the 
Archbishop  of  York  and  the  Bishop  of  Durham,  right  pleasantly 
welcoming  them.  After  some  words  rehearsed,  the  minstrels 
began  to  play  a  basse  dance,  which  was  danced  by  Glueen  Mar- 
garet and  the  Countess  of  Surrey.  The  minstrels  then  played  a 
round,  the  which  was  danced  by  the  Q,ueen,  led  by  the  Lord 
Gray  ;  and  they  were  followed  by  many  lords,  ladies,  and  gen- 
tlewomen. Wine  and  bread  were  then  served  to  the  King,  who 
took  the  bread,  and  with  it  served  his  Q,ueen.  Likewise  he  took 
the  cup,  and  served  her  first  of  all  with  wine. 

1  Leland's  Collectanea.  Narrative  of  Young,  Somerset  Herald. — 
Anstis'  MS. 

2  Ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  43 

"  The  King  of  Scotland  then  began  to  play  on  the  clavichords 
before  his  dueen  ;  after  that  he  played  on  the  lute,  which  pleased 
her  very  much,  and  she  had  great  pleasure  to  hear  him.  Sir 
Edward  Stanley  then  sat  down  to  the  clavichords  and  played  a 
ballad,  which  he  sang  withal.  The  King  commended  it  much, 
and  called  one  of  his  gentlemen  who  could  sing  very  well,  and 
made  him  sing  with  Sir  Edward  Stanley,  and  their  voices  ac- 
corded very  well.  Afterward  Sir  Edward  Stanley  sang  some 
ballads  with  two  of  his  servants,  and  the  King  of  Scotland  gave 
him  good  thanks. 

"  Then  King  James  took  leave  of  his  bride  by  kissing  her,  and 
also  of  her  noble  company.  He  went  out  to  take  horse."  The 
Glueen  and  her  ladies  took  the  opportunity  of  seeing  him  mount, 
which  was  indeed  a  very  noble  feat  of  horsemanship,  from  which 
Shakspeare  must  have  taken  his  celebrated  description  of  the 
mounting  of  Harry,  Prince  of  Wales.  "  James  of  Scotland  did 
leap  on  his  horse,"  says  our  Somerset  Herald,  "without  putting 
his  foot  in  stirrup  ;  and  the  said  steed  was  a  right  fair  courser ; 
and  forward  the  King  spurred,  let  follow  who  might." 

"  The  Earl  of  Surrey,  and  several  other  lords,  mounted  and 
went  after  him ;  of  which  when  King  James  was  aware,  he 
turned  shortly  about,  and,  uncovering  and  bowing  courteously, 
rode  toward  the  Earl,  and  they  went  side  by  side  together  con- 
versing for  a  little  time  ;  then  the  Earl  took  leave  of  his  Grace, 
and  returned  to  the  young  Clueen. 

"  At  supper-time  the  next  day,  James  IV.  came  again  to  the 
Castle.  The  Q,ueen  being  aware  of  his  approach,  made  haste  to 
meet  him  with  very  humble  courtesies  ;  and  after  their  usual  salu- 
tations, they  went  apart  for  private  discourse.  The  Glueen,  in 
her  turn,  showed  her  musical  skill  by  playing  on  the  lute  and 
clavichord  ;  but  ever,  while  she  played  on  these  instruments, 
King  James  knelt  beside  her,  with  his  head  uncovered."  ^ 

At  the  supper,  which  was  served  after  the  Q,ueen  had  done 
playing,  the  King  sat  in  the  chair  of  state  at  the  head  of  the  ta- 
ble— the  Q,ueen  on  his  right  hand  ;  but  the  stool  on  which  she 
sat  not  being  easy,  the  King  rose  from  the  chair  of  state,  and  very 
gallantly  placed  her  in  it.  He  likewise  courteously  desired  the 
Earl  and  Countess  of  Surrey  to  sit  at  the  royal  table.  When 
supper  was  done,  the  King  and  Q.ueen  conversed  privately  to- 
1  Leland'a  Coll.    Somerset  Herald's  Journal. 


44  M  A  R  G  A  R  E  T     T  U  D  O  R. 

gether,  while  the  minstrels  were  performing  a  long  piece  of  music 
James  bade  farewell  to  the  dueen  for  the  night,  by  aftectionately 
saluting  her,  as  usual.  "  The  King  had  dressed  himself  on  that 
occasion  in  a  tan-colored  velvet  doublet,  richly  lined  with  the 
costly  black  fur  called  in  the  middle  ages  by  the  inexplicable 
name  of  budge,  which  has  been  supposed  to  be  the  fur  of  the  black 
otter.  He  wore  a  fine  shirt  worked  with  gold — his  hair  and  beard 
were  somewhat  long.  In  the  presence  of  his  bride  he  always 
uncovered  his  head,"  ^ 

That  evening,  when  he  mounted  his  steed,  the  Earl  of  Surrey 
presented  him  with  the  noble  courser  sent  him  by  his  father-in- 
law,  Henry  VII.  "  It  was  well  appointed  with  damask  housings 
of  the  Tudor  colors,  green  and  white,  which  hung  to  the  ground 
with  great  buttons  of  silk  ;  these,  and  the  bridle  of  velvet,  were 
of  the  same  colors.  King  James  ordered  the  English  steed  to  be 
ridden  before  him  to  Edinburgh." 

The  following  day  was  Sunday,  August  6th,  and  the  young 
Q,ueen  went  to  the  chapel  of  the  Castle  of  Newbattle  •'  in  fair 
order,  accompanied  by  her  own  English  household,  and  the  Lady 
of  Newbattle.  The  Q,ueen  was  dressed  in  a  gown  of  cloth  of 
gold,  edged  with  lattices  {a  chequered  pattern  border)  and  er- 
mine ;  and  her  gentlewomen  were  dressed  after  the  fashion  of 
Scotland.  The  sermon  was  preached  by  one  of  the  Friars  Ob- 
servant. 

"After  mass,  Q,ueen  Margaret  was  conveyed  to  her  chamber; 
and  beneath  her  table,  at  the  lowest  place,  sat  the  Lady  of  New- 
battle,  and  the  Countess  of  Surrey  with  her.  The  other  table 
was  full  of  ladies  ;  and  during  the  dinner,  trumpets  and  sackbuts 
blew." 

"  The  minstrels  of  the  Q,ueen's  chamber  began  to  play  after 
dinner  ;  and  then  danced  the  Glueen,  the  Countess  of  Surrey,  the 
Lady  Lisle,  and  the  daughter  of  the  Lady  of  Castle  Newbattle. 
The  dance  over,  they  passed  the  Sunday  afternoon  in  games  and 
in  conversing."  The  King,  as  usual,  came  to  supper  :  the  min- 
strels played,  and  the  Glueen  danced  before  him.  The  King  was 
dressed  in  "  a  gown"  of  black  velvet,  furred  with  martin  :  the 
rest  of  his  attire  was  wholly  black. '^ 

"  The  next  day  was  appointed  for  the  Glueen's  solemn  entry 
into  Edinburgh.     In  the  morning,  being  the  7th  of  August,  the 

1  Leland's  Coll.    Somerset  Herald's  Journal.  2  Xbid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  45 

King  sent  the  Gtueen  her  new  palfreys,  which  were  to  replace 
those  which  had  been  burnt  at  Dalkeith  ;  and  they  were  all 
dressed  in  new  harness.  The  Glueen  was  then  very  richly  adorned. 
She  came  out  in  order  of  state,  and  was  placed  in  her  litter.  She 
wore  a  gown,  of  cloth  of  gold,  with  a  purfle  of  black  velvet,  and 
a  rich  necklace  of  pearls  and  precious  stones."  ^ 

A  mile  from  the  castle  of  Dalkeith,  the  King  sent  to  the  Q.ueen, 
by  a  gentleman,  a  great  tame  hart,  that  she  might  have  a  course. 
The  Earl  of  Surrey  declined  it — not  because  it  was  a  shame  to 
hunt  the  poor  tame  creature,  but  because  King  James  was  in 
sight,  and  he  thought  the  King  and  Glueen  could  hunt  together 
afterward. 

Half-way  to  Edinburgh,  James  IV.  was  seen  advancing  with 
his  company.  He  was  this  time  attired  in  grand  costume.  "  His 
steed  was  trapped  with  gold,  and  round  its  neck  was  a  deep  gold 
fringe  ;  the  saddle  and  harness  were  of  gold,  but  the  bridle  and 
head-gear  of  burnished  silver.  The  King  wore  a  jacket  of  cloth 
of  gold,  lined  and  bordered  with  violet  velvet  and  fine  black  bouge 
or  budge  fur  ;  his  waistcoat  was  of  violet  satin,  his  hoses  of  scarlet, 
his  shirt  confined  with  bands  of  pearls  and  rich  stones ;  his  spurs 
were  long  and  gilt.  He  rode  toward  the  dueen  in  full  course,  at 
the  pace  at  which  the  hare  is  hunted.  On  seeing  her,  he  made 
very  humble  obeisance,  and,  leaping  down  from  his  horse,  he  came 
and  kissed  her  in  her  litter.  Then  mounting  in  his  usual  gallant 
fashion,  without  touching  stirrup,  a  gentleman-usher  unsheathed 
the  sword  of  state,  and  bore  it  before  his  King  in  regal  fashion. 
The  Scottish  sword  was  inclosed  in  a  scabbard  of  purple  velvet, 
whereon  was  written,  in  letters  of  pearl,  God  my  defende.  The 
like  words  are  on  the  pommel,  the  cross,  and  the  chaj^  also.  The 
Earl  of  Bothwell  bore  this  sword  when  the  royal  party  reached 
Edinburgh  town." 

The  King  placed  himself  by  the  Q^ueen's  litter,  and  passed  all 
the  time  conversing  with  her  and  entertaining  her,  as  he  rode  by 
her  side. 

"  Before  they  entered  Edinburgh,  one  of  the  King's  gentlemen 
brought  out  a  fair  courser,  trapped  in  cloth  of  gold,  with  crimson 
velvet,  interlaced  with  white  and  red  ;  the  King  went  to  the 
horse,  mounted  him  without  touching  the  stirrup  in  the  presence 
of  the  whole  company,  then  tried  his  paces — choosing  to  judge 
^  Leland's  Coll.     Somerset  Herald's  Journal. 


46  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

himself  whether  it  were  safe  for  his  bride  to  ride  on  a  pilUon  be- 
hind him,  which  was  the  mode  in  which  he  intended  to  enter  the 
city."^  Likewise  he  caused  one  of  his  gentlemen  to  momit  be- 
hind him,  as  a  lady  would  ride,  to  see  whether  the  proud  courser 
would  submit  to  bear  double  or  not. 

When  he  had  concluded  all  his  experiments,  he  decided  that 
it  was  not  proper  to  trust  the  safety  of  his  bride  to  his  favorite 
charger  ;  "so  King  James  dismounted  from  him,  and  condescended 
to  ride  on  the  Q,ueen's  gentle  palfrey.  He  mounted,  and  the 
Q,ueen  was  placed  on  a  pillion  behind  him."^ 

This  arrangement,  however,  took  place  about  a  mile  from  the 
gates  of  the  Scottish  capital.  There  were  notable  pa^geants  and 
diversions  to  take  place  before  the  royal  party  entered  therein. 

When  the  procession  was  properly  settled,  the  King,  leading 
the  way  with  his  bride  behind  him,  came  to  a  green  meadow 
half-a-mile  from  Edinburgh,  where  a  rich  pavilion  had  been 
erected  for  the  performance  of  an  interlude  in  which  was  mixed 
up  both  drama,  joust,  and  tourney ;  and  all  the  royal  cortege 
drew  up  to  behold  the  pageant. 

"  Out  of  the  meadow-pavilion  came  a  knight  on  horseback  and 
his  lady-paramour,  who  bare  his  horn  ;  then  another  knight  rode 
into  the  meadow,  and  robbed  him  of  his  lady,  and  blew  the  horn. 
On  which  the  pavilion-knight  exclaimed,  '  Wherefore  hast  thou 
done  this  ?  I  say  that  I  will  prove  upon  thee  that  thou  hast  done 
outrage  to  me  !'  The  invading  knight  demanded  '  if  he  was  armed  ?' 
'  Yea,'  said  the  first.  '  Well,  then,'  replied  the  other,  '  prove  thee 
a  man,  by  doing  thy  devoir.'  They  then  took  their  spears  and 
jousted,  but  without  striking  each  other  ;  they  then  took  to  their 
swords,  and  made  a  fair  tourney.  And  the  challenger  struck  the 
sword  from  the  hand  of  the  defender,  but  gave  it  to  him  again ; 
and  they  began  again  the  tourney  with  still  more  spirit ;  and 
they  did  their  devoir  so  well  that,  expecting  that  they  were  about 
to  proceed  in  good  earnest,  the  King  rode  up  to  part  them  with 
the  (iueen  behind  him,  and  both  the  King  and  Glueen  cried  out, 
'  Peace  I'  and  ordered  them  to  be  parted. 

"  When  the  combatants  had  ceased  their  sword  strife,  the  King 
called  them  before  him  to  declare  the  cause  of  contest,  '  Sire,' 
said  the  challenger,  '  he  hath  taken  from  me  my  lady-paramour, 
^  Leland's  Coll.,  Somerset  Herald's  Journal. 
"  Leland's  Collectanea.     Narrative  of  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  Anstis'  MS. 


MARGARETTUDOR.  47 

whereof  I  was  insured  by  her  faith.'  The  defender  answered, 
'  Sire,  I  shall  defend  me  against  him  upon  this  case.'  " 

"  King  James  replied,  '  Bring  your  friends,  and  a  day  shall  be 
appointed  for  you;'  wherefore  they  thanked  him,  and  everybody 
drew  off'  toward  the  town  ;  and  the  name  of  the  challenger  was 
Sir  Patrick  Hamilton,  brother  of  the  Lord  Hamilton,  the  king's 
cousin,  who  rode  next  him  in  his  procession  ;  and  the  defender 
was  Patrick  Sinclair,  Esq."  Great  multitudes  had  issued  out  of 
Edinburgh  to  see  this  performance  ;  and  so  seriously  has  the 
Somerset  Herald  described  the  scene,  that  it  is  not  easy  to  decide 
whether  they  were  fighting  in  earnest  or  in  sport. 

"  The  next  pastime  that  befell  on  the  progress  to  Edinburgh  was 
the  hunting  of  the  tame  deer,  which  was  led  in  the  royal  proces- 
sion, and  waited  during  the  combat.  King  James  ordered  the 
creature  to  be  loosed,  and  a  greyhound  was  sent  after  him.  A 
fair  course  ensued  ;"  but  we  are  right  glad  to  relate  that  the  poor 
beast  succeeded  in  making  the  best  of  his  way  to  his  old  quarters 
at  Edinburgh,  and,  gaining  the  town,  went  to  his  place  of  resort 
in  the  grounds  of  Holyrood,  where  he  remained  in  safety. 

"Vast  numbers  of  the  honest  folk  of  Edinburgh,  and  of  the 
country  round  about,  were  assembled  to  see  the  dueen's  entry ; 
and  in  fair  order  came  the  royal  procession  to  the  gate,  the  Glueen 
still  riding  behind  the  King.  When  entering  the  city,  the  Gray- 
friars  came  in  procession,  with  the  cross  and  some  relics,  which 
were  presented  by  their  warden  for  the  King  to  kiss.  But  he 
would  not,  until  the  Q,ueen  had  kissed  them;  and  his  Grace 
would  still  ride  with  his  head  uncovered,  out  of  respect  to  her." 

The  dueen's  southern  minstrel,  Johannes,  and  his  company, 
and  her  trumpets,  did  their  devoir  at  her  entry,  but  they  noted 
to  the  Herald  Somerset  "that  the  Scotch  minstrels  and  trumpets 
had  not  new  banners," 

"  Right  across  the  entry  of  Edinburgh  was  a  gate,  with  two 
tourelles,  and  a  window  in  the  midst.  In  the  tourelles  were  at 
their  windows  vested  angels,  singing  joyously  for  the  coming  of 
so  noble  a  lady ;  and  at  the  middle  window  was  another  angel, 
who  flew  down  and  presented  the  keys  of  the  town  to  dueen 
Margaret.^  Then  came  in  procession  the  college  of  the  parish  of 
St.  Giles,  richly  vested,  and  they  brought  the  relic  of  the  arm  of 
their  saint,  which  was  presented  to  their  King  to  kiss."  But  he 
*  Leland's  Collectanea.   Narrative  of  Young,  Somerset  Herald.    Anstis'  MS. 


48  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

courteously  refused  to  take  precedence,  in  this  ceremony,  of  his 
royal  partner,  sitting  on  the  pillion  behind  hini ;  and  Q,ueen  Mar- 
garet had  the  privilege  of  kissing  the  arm  of  St.  Giles  before  her 
lord.  The  King  then  began  to  sing  "  Te  Deum  Laudamus  ;'' 
and  it  may  be  supposed  the  whole  of  the  ecclesiastics  kept  up  the 
strain. 

"  In  the  midst  of  Edinburgh  was  a  cross,  and  hard  by  a  foun- 
tain casting  forth  wine  ;  and  each  one  drank  that  would.  Nigh 
to  the  cross  a  scaffold,  where  was  represented  Paris  and  the  three 
goddesses,  with  Mercury,  who  gave  Paris  the  apple  of  gold.  But, 
upon  the  same  scaffold  with  these  pagans,  were  represented  the 
*  Salutation  of  Gabriel  to  the  Virgin  ;'  the  '  Marriage  of  the  Vir- 
gin to  Joseph,'  and  a  pageant  with  the  '  Four  Virtues  ;'  likewise 
were  stationed  war-tabrets,  which  played  merrily.  There  were 
devices  of  a  liconie  (unicorn),  and  a  greyhound,  being  the  Stuart 
and  the  Tudor  beasts."  Wreaths  of  the  flowers  of  each  royal 
family— being  cardooiis  or  thistles,  and  red  roses  interlaced — 
formed  the  borders  to  these  tableaux  vivans. 

"  Then  the  noble  company  all  passed  out  of  the  town,  and  ap- 
proached to  the  church  of  the  Holy  Cross  (Holyrood),  out  of 
which  came  the  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  brother  to  the  King, 
with  his  cross  borne  before  him,  accompanied  by  the  reverend 
fathers  in  God,  the  Bishop  of  Aberdeen  (who  was  Lord  Privy 
Seal  of  Scotland),  the  Bishops  of  Orkney,  Caithness,  Ross,  Dun- 
blane and  Dunkeld,  and  many  Abbots,  all  in  their  pontificals, 
preceded  by  their  crosses.  The  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews  gave 
the  King  a  relic  to  kiss ;  but  he,  as  before,  gave  precedence  to 
his  bride. ^ 

"  Each  one  of  the  attendants  leaped  off  his  horse,  and  in  fair 
order  followed  the  ecclesiastical  procession  into  the  church.  The 
King  and  dueen  alighted  the  last,  at  the  entrance  of  the  church  ; 
and  after  the  King  had  aided  the  Glueen,  by  taking  her  round  the 
waist  and  lifting  her  from  her  pillion,  he  led  her  to  the  high-altar, 
making  humble  reverence.  There  was  a  place  prepared  for  their 
Graces  to  kneel  upon,  being  two  cushions  of  cloth  of  gold.  The 
Lord  Chamberlain  of  the  Glueen  exercised  his  office  in  her  ser- 
vice ;  but  the  King  would  never  kneel  down  first,  but  both  knelt 
together. 

"  In  the  church  were  the  Earl  of  Huntly,  the  Earl  of  Errol, 
^  Leland's  CoL    John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  (fee. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  49 

Lord  Constable  of  Scotland,  the  Earl  of  Argyle,  Steward  of  the 
Household,  the  Earl  of  Lennox,  Chamberlain  (in  absence  of  the 
Earl  of  Caithness),  and  the  Earl  of  Morton,  and  many  nobles, 
knights,  and  gentlemen,  well  arrayed,  who  all  made  reverence  to 
the  royal  bride,  and  she  to  them. 

"  When  all  reverences  were  done  at  the  church,  and  the  pro- 
cession formed  in  due  order,  the  King  proceeded  to  his  palace  of 
Holyrood.  He  went  through  the  cloisters,  holding  the  Q,ueen 
always  round  the  waist,  and  walking  with  his  head  uncovered, 
out  of  regard  to  her  presence. 

"  Thus  the  King  took  his  way  through  the  cloisters  to  the  great 
chamber  of  Holyrood,  where  were  assembled  many  Scottish  ladies 
of  great  name,  iviffs  to  divers  of  the  above-mentioned  lords,  with 
numbers  of  gentlemen  and  gentlewomen,  arrayed  very  nobly  after 
their  country  guise.  Nor  did  the  King,  on  entering  the  great 
chamber,  let  go  the  Q,ueen  till  she  had  received  the  ladies  who 
were  presented  to  her  by  the  Bishop  of  Murray  (who  had  been 
her  guide  from  England),  naming  to  her  the  names  of  all  of  them."  ' 

"  And  when  the  Glueen  had  saluted  all  the  ladies  presented  to 
her,  the  King  kissed  her  for  her  labor,  and  so  took  her  by  the 
waist  again,  with  lowly  courtesy,  his  bonnet  in  his  hand,  and 
brought  her  to  her  second  or  inner  chamber,  and  there  saluted 
her  once  more,  taking  his  leave  right  humbly,  with  reverend 
obeisance  to  her,  and  went  to  his  own  lodging.  The  King  sup- 
ped in  his  chamber,  and  the  Glueen  within  her  own ;  but  the 
King,  after  supper,  went  to  see  her,  and  they  danced  some  basse 
dances.  This  done,  the  King  took  his  leave,  and  bade  her  good 
night  joyously. 

"  The  town  of  Edinburgh  was  all  that  day  hung  with  tapestry  ; 
the  houses  and  windows  were  full  of  lords,  ladies,  and  gentlemen  ; 
and  in  the  streets  so  great  a  multitude  of  people,  that  it  was  a 
fair  thing  to  see.  The  people  were  very  glad  of  the  coming  of 
their  Q,ueen,  therefore  all  the  bells  of  Edinburgh  town  rang  for 
mirth. 

"  The  next  day  being  the  8th  of  August,  all  was  prepared  for 
that  right  noble  marriage.  The  Earl  of  Surrey  was  arrayed  in 
a  long  gown  of  cloth  of  gold,  and  wore  his  rich  collar  of  the 
Order  of  the  Garter  ;  and  the  Lords  Gray,  Latimer,  Dacres,  and 
Scrope  were  right  honorably  arrayed.  The  King  of  Scotland 
1  Leland's  Coll.    John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  (fee, 

VOL.  I. — C 


50 


MARGARET     TUDOR. 


stood  in  his  great  chamber  as  the  said  lords  entered.  He  made 
reverence  to  everyone,  his  bonnet  in  his  hand.  The  King  caused 
the  Enghsh  lords  to  sit  on  a  form  before  him,  and  desired  them 
to  cover  their  heads  ;  he  seated  himself  in  a  chair  of  crimson 
velvet,  the  panels  being  gilt.  It  wsiS  set  under  a  cloth  of  state, 
or  canopy  of  blue  velvet  figured  with  gold." 

After  Dr.  Moreshead  and  Dr.  Rawlins,  the  one  on  the  part  ot 
England,  and  the  other  on  the  part  of  Scotland,  had  read  and 
answered  a  preposition,  the  Bishop  of  Aberdeen  escorted  the 
English  lords  to  the  dueen's  chamber,  where  she  was  ready  to 
be  led  by  them  to  the  church. 

The  royal  bride  was  arrayed  in  a  rich  robe  of  white  and  gold 
damask,  bordered  with  crimson  velvet,  and  lined  with  white 
sarcenet.  She  wore  a  magnificent  crown,  a  collar  of  pearls  and 
precious  stones,  and  a  rich  coif ;  her  hair  was  hanging  down  the 
whole  length  of  her  body.  She  was  led  on  the  right  hand  by 
the  Archbishop  of  York,  and  on  the  left  by  the  Earl  of  Surrey. 
"  The  Glueen  was  nobly  accompanied  by  her  ladies,  very  richly 
arrayed — the  two  Ladies  Nevill,  the  Lady  Lisle,  the  Lady  Stan- 
ley, and  the  Lady  Guildford,^  and  her  train  was  borne  by  the 
Countess  of  Surrey.  It  was  arranged  by  the  Earl  of  Surrey  that 
two  of  the  greatest  ladies  of  England  should  be  accompanied,  in 
the  Glueen's  procession,  by  two  of  the  greatest  ladies  in  Scotland, 
all  four  going  together  in  a  row,  where  they  had  room  so  to  do ; 
and  thus  they  did  during  the  whole  of  the  marriage  festivities." 

"  Thus  the  Q.ueen  was  conveyed  from  her  chamber  to  the 
church  of  Holyrood,  and  placed  near  the  font  ;  Mistress  Denton, 
her  governess,  being  always  near  her,  and  all  her  noble  company 
standing  on  the  left  side  of  the  church. 

"  Then  the  King  Avas  brought  by  a  very  fair  company,  consist- 
ing of  his  brother  the  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  the  Lord 
Hamilton  his  cousin,  who  bore  the  sword  of  state  before  him. 
His  officers  of  arms  (heralds)  were  all  in  their  array,  and  all  his 
nobles  stood  in  order  on  the  right  side  of  the  church.  When 
the  King  passed  near  the  Q,ueen  he  made  reverence  to  her,  and 
she  again  to  him,  very  humbly  and  lowly.  He  wore  a  robe  of 
white  damask  figured  with  gold,  a  jacket  with  slashes  of  crimson 
satin,  and  the  border  of  black  velvet,  a  waistcoat  of  cloth  of 

^  "Who  at  this  period  occupied  the  station  called  "  the  lady  mistress"  to 
the  daughter  of  Henry  VII. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  51 

gold,  and  a  pair  of  scarlet  hose.  His  shirt  was  broidered  with 
gold  thread,  his  bonnet  black  velvet,  looped  up  with  a  rich 
balass-ruby,  and  his  sword  was  girt  about  him. 

"  That  noble  marriage  was  performed  by  the  Archbishop  of 
Glasgow  and  the  Archbishop  of  York,  in  presence  of  all ;  and 
they  read  the  bulls  of  their  Holy  Father,  the  Pope,^  consenting 
thereto.  The  trumpets  then  blew  up  for  joy ;  and  the  King, 
bare-headed,  holding  his  Q,ueen  by  the  right  hand,  passed  through 
the  said  company  to  the  high  altar.  There  was  prepared  a  place 
with  cushions  of  cloth  of  gold  for  them  to  kneel  upon  ;  but  the 
King  would  never  kneel. first,  paying  the  Glueen  the  greatest 
reverence  that  possibly  might  be. 

"  During  the  Litany,  which  was  sung  and  said  by  the  Arch- 
bishops, the  King  withdrew  to  his  traverse,  and  the  Q,ueen  to 
hers.  At  the  Gospel  they  made  their  offerings,  and  before  the 
holy  canon  the  (iueen  was  anointed,  after  which  the  King  gave 
into  her  hand  the  scepter. 

"  At  this  part  of  the  ceremony  the  choir  bust  into  the  Te 
Deum  laudamus  ;  two  prelates  held  the  cloth  of  state  over  the 
royal  pair,  during  the  rest  of  the  mass  ;  ^  and  when  all  cere- 
monies were  accomplished,  the  lords  of  the  household  brought 
bread  and  wine  in  rich  pots  and  cups.  After  the  collation,  the 
King  led  back  the  Glueen  to  her  chamber,  and  retired  to  his 
own.  -  ,     '  ' 

"At  dinner  the  King  caused  the  Q,ueen  to  be  served  before 
him,  with  all  the  honor  that  might  be  done.  At  the  first  course 
she  was  served  with  a  wild  boar's  head,  then  with  a  fair  piece 
of  brawn,  and  in  the  third  place  with  a  gambon  (ham),  which 
was  followed  by  divers  other  dishes,  to  the  number  of  twelve,  all 
in  fair  and  rich  vessels. 

"  The  King  was  served  in  gilt  vessels  as  the  Q.ueen  was.  His 
pannetiers  were  the  son  of  the  Earl  of  Both  well's  brother,  and 
Lord  Gray's  son ;  and  his  cupbearer  his  cousin,  the  Lord  of 
Hamilton.  The  Archbishops  of  St.  Andrews  and  York  dined 
with  him.  The  state-chamber  was  hanged  with  red  and  blue, 
and  in  it  was  a  cezZ-of-state  of  cloth-of-gold ;  but  the  King  was 
not  under  it  that  same  day.     There  was  also  in  the  same  cham- 

1  Leland's  Coll.     John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  <fee. 

2  A  canopy  is  held  over  the  head  of  the  bride  in  the  Catholic  marriages 
on  the  Coatinent,  even  when  persons  of  the  humblest  rank  are  married. 


62  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

ber  a  rich  state-bed,  and  a  rich  dresser/  set  out  after  the  manner 
of  the  country.  The  Lord  Gray  of  Scotland  served  the  King 
with  water  to  wash,  and  the  Earl  of  Huntly  held  the  towel. 
The  officers-of-arms  presented  themselves  to  ciy  largesse,  when 
the  King  commanded  Marchmont  the  herald  thus — 

"  '  Go  ye  and  cry  toward  the  Glueen  Ji/'St — Largesse  to  the 
high  and  mighty  Princess  Margaret,  hij  the  grace  of  God 
Queen  of  Scotland,  and  first  daughter  of  the  very  high  and 
7nighty  Prince,  Henry  VII.,  by  the  selfsame  grace  King  of 
England.' 

"  The  same  was  cried  three  times  in  the  King's  chamber,  in 
the  great  chamber  close  by  it,  and  in  the  great  hall  of  the  King 
and  Q/Ueen.  James  would  not  have  his  largesse  cried,  nor  insti- 
tuted, saying — 

"  '  It  sufficeth  to  cry  hers.' 

"  The  hangings  of  the  chamber  represented  the  history  of 
Troy  town,  and  the  painted  glass  in  the  windows  were  the  arms 
of  England  and  Scotland  biparted,  to  which  a  thistle  and  a  rose, 
interleaved  through  a  crown,  were  added.  After  dinner  the 
minstrels  played." 

The  song  they  performed  as  an  epithalamium  in  honor  of  Mar- 
garet Tudor's  nuptials  has  been  preserved,  words  and  music  ;  ' 
both  are  great  curiosities,  as  testimonials  of  the  state  of  literature 
and  the  arts  at  the  era  of  1503 — 

"  0  fair,  fairest  of  every  fair, 
Princess  most  pleasant  and  preclare. 
The  loveliest  that  on-live  there  been, 
Welcome  in  Scotland  to  be  Queen  1 

Young  tender  plant  of  pulchritude, 
Descended  of  imperial  blood, 
Fresh  fragrant  flower  of  fairhood  sheen, 
Welcome  in  Scotland  to  be  Queen ! 

Sweet  lovely  imp  of  beauty  clear. 
Most  mighty  monarch's  daughter  dear, 

^  Probably  what  is  now  called  a  side-board.  As  to  the  bed,  state  sleep- 
ing-chambers were  constantly  used  as  dining  or  supper  rooms  until  the 
seventeenth  century.  All  heralds'  journals  will  prove  this  fact.  See  the 
coronation  of  Elizabeth  of  York,  tfec. 

'^  Additional  MSS.  Brit.  Museum. 


MARGARETTUDOHr  53 

Born  of  a  Princess  most  serene, 
AVelcome  in  Scotland  to  be  Queen  1 

Welcome  the  rose  both  red  and  white, 
Welcome  the  flower  of  our  delight, 
Our  sprite  rejoicing  from  the  spleen, 
Welcome  in  Scotland  to  be  Queen  !" 

A  hall  was  cleared  for  the  dance  when  the  minstrels  had  con- 
cluded their  stanzas.  The  King  and  Glueen  danced,  and.  many- 
ladies,  lords,  and  gentlemen,  "  and  some  good  bodies,"  continues 
our  quaint  Somerset  Herald,  "  made  games  of  j^;(2S8e-p(2Sse,  which 
did  very  well."  ^  But  games  of  amusement  which  are  out  of 
fashion  are  the  most  inscrutable  of  all  antiquarian  enigmas,  and 
this  game  of  "passe-passe"  remains  to  us  a  mystery. 

At  the  hour  of  even-song,  the  King,  accompanied  by  his  nobles 
and  those  pertaining  to  the  Q,ueen,  but  without  her,  went  to 
church,  where  the  Abbot  of  Holyrood  did  the  service.  On  the 
King's  return,  before  he  sat  down,  he  sent  his  marriage  robe  to 
the  heralds  and  officers-of-arms  of  England,  and  put  on  another 
of  black  velvet,  furred  with  martens.  Somerset  Herald  (the 
chronicler  of  these  incidents),  and  his  companions,  bore  the 
King's  marriage-dress  the  next  day  in  solemn  procession,  through 
the  court,  and  returned  thanks  to  his  Grace  for  it. 

"  After  supper  the  night  approached,  therefore  every  one  with- 
drew himself  to  his  lodging  to  take  his  rest ;  and  the  King  led 
the  dueen  apart.  They  went  away  together — God,  by  his  grace, 
hold  them  in  long  prosperity  I"'' 

The  marriage  of  Margaret  was  celebrated  by  the  poem  of 
"The  Thistle  and  the  Rose,"  written  by  William,  or,  as  some 
call  him,  George  Dunbar,  a  native  of  Salton  in  East  Lothian. 
Every  one  has  heard  of  this  poem,  yet  very  few  but  antiquaries 
know  aught  concerning  it.  To  our  taste  it  has  been  excessively 
overpraised ;  the  wild  border-ballads  preserved  from  the  antique 
minstrelsy  of  Scotland,  such  as  the  "  Chevy  Chace,"  or  "  Otter- 
bourne,"  and  the  plaintive  tenderness  of  the  "  Maid  of  Lochryan," 
all  within  a  few  years  cotemporary  or  precedent,  are  infinitely 
preferable.  "The  Thistle  and  the  Rose"  is,  however,  a  success- 
ful imitation  of  the  then  fashionable  style  of  Lydgate  and  Occleve, 
imitators  of  Chaucer.     Dunbar's  poem  had  been  commenced  at 

1  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  &c.  ^  Ibid. 


54  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

the  time  of  the  marriage-treaty  with  Margaret  and  James  IV., 
and  was  finished  about  three  months  before  the  arrival  of  the 
bride.  It  is  an  allegory  ;  and  of  course,  according  to  the  nature 
of  such  sophisticated  compositions,  it  treats  of  all  tilings  rather 
than  its  ostensible  subject,  the  marriage  of  James  the  King  and 
Margaret  the  Q,ueen. 

Dunbar  takes  for  his  theme  the  armorial  bearings  of  James  IV. 
He  writes  many  verses,  indeed,  respecting  the  Scottish  lion  on 
the  shield,  and  the  unicorns  its  supporters.  He  has  many  mysti- 
cal sayings  on  the  thistle  and  the  rose,  which  are  painted  round 
about  the  blazonry.  By  the  thistle  he  is  supposed  to  mean  James 
IV.,  and  by  the  rose  it  is  guessed  that  he  denotes  Margaret.  He 
gives  the  royal  Thistle  an  exhortation  in  her  behalf,  which  in 
truth  he  exceedingly  needed,  recommending  conjugal  fidelity  to 
the  beautiful  Rose,  whose  lineage,  he  observes,  was  far  above 
that  of  the  Lily  (Valois).  There  are  many  other  verses  of  far 
more  poetical  beauty  than  the  following,  but  it  is  the  only  one 
wherein  Margaret  is  clearly  indicated — 

"  Nor  hold  no  other  flower  in  life  so  dainty 
Like  the  fresh  Rose,  of  color  red  and  white, 
For  if  thou  dost,  hurt  is  thine  honesty, 
Considering  that  no  flower  is  so  perfite, 
So  full  of  virtue,  pleasance,  or  delight, 
So  full  of  blissful  angel-like  beauty, 
Imperial  with  honor  and  dignity." 

The  royal  bride  was  grateful  for  this  good  advice  to  her  gay  lord, 
and  honored  Dunbar  ever  after  with  her  patronage.^ 

^  Dunbar,  like  most  poets,  was  not  over-gifted  with  this  world's  gear. 
He  was  destitute  of  all  support  at  the  commencement  of  one  severe  winter. 
In  order  to  set  forth  his  claims  to  royal  bounty,  he  wrote  a  supplication  in 
verse  in  the  character  of  an  old  broken-down  palfrey,  who  had  grown  gray 
in  his  King's  service,  and  needed  shelter  from  the  cold  of  the  approaching 
Cliristmas,  which  his  royal  lord,  he  knew,  was  too  humane  to  refuse  to  his 
creatures,  either  four-footed  or  biped.  James  the  Fourth  often  answered  his 
petitioners  in  verse ;  on  this  occasion  he  took  the  pen,  and  wrote  off  the  fol- 
lowing order  to  his  Treasurer : — 

"  Responsio  Regis. 
"After  our  writing,  Treasurer, 
Take  in  this  gray  horse,  old  Dunbar, 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  55 

*'  Every  lord,  lady,  and  gentlewoman  in  Edinburgh  came  next 
day  to  the  palace.  The  King  went  at  ten  o'clock  that  morning 
to  mass  in  the  great  church,  accompanied  by  his  lords  and  nobles. 
King  James  was  arrayed  in  a  rich  robe  of  cloth  of  gold,  furred, 
of  fine  black  douge,  his  doublet  of  crimson  satin,  his  hose  black 
velvet,  his  bonnet  ornamented  with  a  St.  George  of  gold,  with  a 
ruby  dragon.  A  pair  of  gold  beads  were  hanging  to  his  girdle. 
During  the  mass  the  Earl  of  Surrey  came  to  him,  for  which  kind- 
ness the  King  took  his  arm  till  he  came  to  his  chamber." 

"  His  dinner  was  brought  in  silver  vessels  by  the  officers  who 
served  him  the  day  before.  After  dinner  a  young  man,  an  Ital- 
ian, danced  on  a  cord  very  well  for  the  King's  recreation.  The 
ladies  were  at  the  windows  of  the  (Queen's  quarters  (apartments), 
and  when  the  rope-dancing  was  done  they  began  to  dance.  Of 
the  dueen  I  say  nothing,"  adds  the  Somerset  Herald,  falling  into 
personal  narrative,  "  for  that  same  day  I  saw  her  not,  but  I  under- 
stood she  was  in  good  health  and  merry."  ^ 

"  As  for  supper,  though  it  was  fast-day,  banquets  of  many 
meats  were  not  forgotten.  That  evening  the  dueen  sent  her 
wedding-gown  to  the  heralds  and  officers-of-arms  of  Scotland. 
The  next  day  Marchmont  Herald  barred  the  court  in  escharpe, 
he  and  his  companions  thanking  the  Q,ueen  therefor  ;  but  on  the 
morrow  she  sent  liim  a  largess  of  fifteen  nobles,  and  the  Scotch 
heralds  brought  again  the  said  robe,  and  put  it  in  the  wardrobe 
of  the  dueen,  as  she  had  desired  when  she  gave  them  the  recom- 
pense."''' 

The  explanation  of  this  little  mysterious  passage  seems  to  be, 
that  the  royal  bride,  according  to  ancient  custom,  sent  her  wed- 
ding-gown as  the  fee  of  her  husband's  heralds ;  in  like  manner, 

Which  in  my  aucht*  with  service  true 
In  lyart  f  changed  is  his  hue. 
Go  house  him  now  against  this  Yule  ! 
And  busk  X  him  like  a  bishop's  mule ; 
For  with  my  hand  I  have  endorst 
To  pay  whate'er  his  trappings  cost." 

Dunbar,  the  poet-laureate  of  James  IV.,  must  not  be  confounded  with 
another  elegant  poet,  Bishop  Gavin  Dunbar,  nearly  of  the  same  era,  to 
whom  Queen  Margaret  afterward  confided  the  education  of  her  infant  son, 
James  V. 

1  Leland's  Collectanea,    Young's  Journal    Anstis'  MS.  2  ibid. 

•  Aid.  +  Gray,  I  Adorn  him  with  gay  clothes. 


56  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

as  it  has  been  previously  shown,  that  James  IV.  sent  his  robe  to 
the  English  heralds.  But  Glueen  Margaret,  like  most  ladies,  had 
a  certain  degree  of  affection  for  her  wedding-gown.  She  there- 
fore redeemed  it,  or  purchased  it  back,  for  fifty  marks  ;  and  it  was 
duly  restored  to  her  royal  wardrobe  by  the  Herald  Marchmont. 
Bat  what  our  minute  chronicler,  the  Somerset  Herald,  means  by 
Marchmont  "  barring  the  court  in  eschar pe^'  remains  an  heraldic 
mystery. 

"  The  dueen  went  in  state  to  the  High  Church  on  the  10th  of 
August,  the  festival  of  St.  Lawrence's  day,  being  accompanied  by 
her  noble  train,  and  by  many  great  ladies  of  Scotland,  very  ho7i- 
estly  appointed.  Glueen  Margaret  was  very  well  arrayed  in  a 
rich  robe  of  cloth-of-gold,  with  a  rich  collar  (necklace).  Before 
her  seat  was  prepared  an  altar,  adorned  with  costly  images ;  and 
the  curtains  of  her  closet,  within  which  she  was  put,  were  fig- 
ured in  gorgeous  hues  of  red,  blue,  and  green.  As  she  thus  sat 
in  splendor,  her  appearance  must  have  greatly  resembled  that  of 
her  royal  mother,  Elizabeth  of  York,  as  represented  in  the  mag- 
nificent painted  glass  window  at  St.  Margaret's  Church,  West- 
minster." 

The  King  followed  dueen  Margaret ;  he  was  nobly  attired, 
and  all  was  in  fair  order.  The  Lord  Huntly  that  day  bore  the 
sword  of  state.  "  The  King  was  dressed  in  a  gown  of  crimson 
figured  velvet,  furred  of  geneU,  a  doublet  of  black  satin,  hose  of 
scarlet,  and  bonnet  of  the  day  before,  with  the  St.  George  ;  and," 
adds  our  herald  journalist,  "  his  beard  was  hytecl  of  shears,"  ^ — an 
alteration  in  his  personal  arrangements  evidently  suggested  by  his 
young  bride,  as  the  fact  that  his  beard  and  hair  were  somewhat 
too  long  had  been  mentioned  rather  disapprovingly.  Kyted  of 
shears,  when  interpreted,  may  perhaps  mean  "  clipped  with 
scissors." 

"  When  King  James  arrived  within  the  curtain  of  his  royal 
closet  at  the  High  Church,  he  made  humble  reverence  to  his 
Q,ueen  ;  and  she  did  in  like  manner  to  him.  At  the  offering, 
both  the  King  and  Q,ueen  offered  together.  The  King,  when 
the  mass  was  done,  for  the  love  of  the  Glueen  made  forty-one 
knights.  After  the  oath  taken.  Earl  Bothwell  chaussed  them 
with  the  gilt  spurs.  The  King  gave  them  the  stroke,  or  accolade, 
with  the  sword  which  had  been  borne  before  him. 

1  Leland's  Collectanea.     Young's  Journal.     Anstis'  MS. 


MARGARET     TUDOR,  57 

"  When  all  was  done,  King  James  turned  to  dueen  Margaret 
and  her  chief  lady,  and  said  to  her  Grace — '  These  are  your 
knights  I'  Then  taking  her  by  the  hand,  he  led  her  to  the  door  of 
her  chamber,  and  entered  with  her,  and  they  were  well  and 
honestly^  served  with  plenty  of  ypocras,  and  likewise  all  the 
Q^ueen's  attendants." 

Jousts  were  held,  when  the  royal  party  rose  from  dinner,  at 
the  basse  court,  before  the  windows  of  the  dining-hall  at  Holy  rood. 
This  court,  it  is  explained,  was  not  provided  with  barriers,  and 
had  only  the  tilt.  The  windows  were  well  appointed,  and  hung 
with  rich  draperies.  "  The  King  appeared  at  one  of  the  windows, 
accompanied  by  the  Archbishops  of  York  and  St.  Andrews,  and 
the  Bishop  of  Durham.  The  (olueen  appeared  at  the  bay-window 
of  her  great  chamber,  accompanied  by  her  ladies  and  others  of 
the  realm  of  Scotland,  and  with  my  lord,  her  Great  Chamberlain. 
The  said  windows  were  arrayed  for  her  still  more  richly  than 
those  of  the  King.  Opposite  the  King  and  Q^ueen's  window  was 
a  scaffold  erected,  on  which  stood  my  Lord  of  Surrey  and  the 
Earl  of  Both  well  only,  as  judges  of  the  tilting  and  sword-play  or 
tourney.  Lord  Morley,  the  Constable,  the  officers-of-arms,  and 
many  other  officers  and  trumpeters,  stood  in  the  court.  My  Lord 
of  Hamilton,  the  King's  cousin,  dressed  in  red  satin.  Lord  Roos, 
Sir  Davy  Hume,  William  Cockburn,  Patrick  Sinclair,  and  Henry 
Bruce,  each  one  ran  a  course  with  spear  and  sword,  the  points 
broken  or  blunted.     Some  broke  spears,  others  did  not." 

"  When  the  courses  and  the  tourney  were  concluded,  the 
King  and  Glueen  of  Scotland  went  to  supper  ;  then  they  danced, 
and  retired  to  their  chamber.  -  In  the  course  of  that  day,  the 
Archbishop  of  York  and  the  Bishop  of  Durham  took  leave  of 
their  royal  Graces,  that  they  might  commence  their  homeward 
journey  betimes  next  morning. 

"  The  dueen  did  not  attend  mass  the  next  day,  but  kept  her 
chamber.  After  dinner  she  danced  with  her  husband,  and  they 
seemed  to  pass  their  time  in  marvelous  mirth  and  gladness.^ 
There  were  jousts  that  day,  and  many  spears  were  broken.  The 
Q,ueen  again  appeared  in  great  state,  enthroned  in  the  great  bay- 
window  off  her  presence-chamber  at  Holyrood,  which  was  richly 

This  -word,  often  used  by  the  Somerset  Herald,  always  bears  the  mean- 
ing of  the  French  word  honnette,  meaning  properly,  orderly,  decorously. 
2  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  <tc. 


58  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

adorned  as  the  day  before  ;  and  she  was  surrounded  by  Scottish 
ladies  in  the  garb  of  their  country.  Her  Grace  entertained  the 
King  that  evening  in  her  great  chamber.  There  was  supper,  and 
John  EngHsh  and  his. companions  played."  The  performance  of 
John  English  and  his  company  was  of  the  dramatic  kind. 

Sir  Davy  Owen,  Sir  Richard  Poulle,  John  Huse,  and  Sir 
Edward  Stanley,  and  many  others  of  the  Glueen's  English  train 
and  escort,  that  evening  took  their  conge  of  Q.ueen  Margaret  and 
the  King,  and  went  their  way.^  They  carried  with  them  a 
private  letter  from  the  young  bride  of  Scotland  to  her  father, 
Henry  YII.^  Part  of  it  was  written  at  her  dictation  by  one  of 
her  ladies.  The  postscript  is  in  her  own  hand,  if  hand  her 
extraordinary  marks  can  be  called.  The  epistle  is  strongly 
characteristic  of  Margaret's  discontented  disposition.  From  its 
tenor  it  is  evident  that  the  tender  and  considerate  conduct  of  the 
King  of  Scotland  had  failed  to  awaken  the  slightest  movement  of 
affection,  or  even  gratitude,  in  her  heart.  Her  detracting  re- 
marks "on  this  King"  appear  in  unpleasant  contrast  with  his 
attentive  and  winning  conduct,  to  which  the  English  herald, 
John  Young,  has  borne  impartial  witness  in  the  foregoing  narra- 
tive. 

"  My  most  dear  Lord  and  Father, — In  the  most  humble  wise  that  I  can 
think,  I  recommend  me  unto  your  Grace,  beseeching  y(ni  of  your  daily 
blessing,  and  that  it  will  please  you  to  give  hearty  thanks  to  all  your  serv- 
ants, the  which,  by  your  commandment,  have  given  right  good  attendance 
on  me  at  this  time,  and  specially  to  all  the  ladies  and  jantilwomen  which 
hath  accompanied  me  hither,  and  to  give  credence  to  this  good  lady,  the 
bearer  hereof;  for  I  have  showed  her  more  of  my  mind  than  I  will  write 
at  this  time. 

"  Sir,  I  beseech  your  Grace  to  be  good  and  gracious  lord  to  Thomas, 
which  was  footman  to  the  Queen  my  Tnoder,  whose  sowle  God  assoyle"  (it 
has  been  shown  previously  that  her  mother,  Elizabeth  of  York,  died  just 
before  Margaret  departed  for  Scotland,)  "  for  he  hath  been  one  of  my  foot- 
men hither,  with  as  great  diligence  and  labour  to  his  great  charge  of  his  own 
good  and  true  mind.  I  am  not  able  to  recompense  him  except  by  the  favor 
of  your  Grace. 

"  Sir,  as  for  news,  I  have  none  to  send,  but  that  my  Lord  of  Surrey  is  in 
great  favor  with  this  King  here,  that  he  can  not  forbear  the  company  of  him 
at  no  time  of  the  day.  He  and  the  Bishop  of  Murray  ordereth  every  thing 
as  nigh  as  they  can  to  the  King's  pleasure ;  I  pray  God  it  may  be  for  my 
poor  heart's  ease  in  time  to  come.     They  call  not  my  Chamberlain  to  them, 

1  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  (fee. 

'  Sir  Henry  Ellis's  Historical  Letters,  First  Series. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  59 

■who,  I  am  sure,  would  speak  better  for  my  part  than  any  of  them  that 
be  of  that  council.  But  if  he  speak  any  thing  for  my  cause,  my  Lord  of 
Surrey  hath  such  words  unto  him  that  he  dare  speak  no  further.  Godsend 
me  comfort  to  his  pleasure,  and  that  I  and  mine,  that  be  left  here  with  me, 
may  be  well  entreated," 

So  far  the  child-Q,ueen  has  communicated  her  grievances 
through  the  pen  of  one  of  her  attendants  ;  but  she  thinks  proper 
to  finish  the  letter  in  her  own  hand.  It  does  not  seem  that 
Princesses  of  fourteen  years  old,  in  those  days,  held  the  pens  of 
ready  writers  :  the  orthography  and  characters  are  equally  bar- 
barous ;  altogether,  Margaret's  first  autograph  is  nearly  illegible  ; 
and  one  would  think  that  it  was  tribulation  of  heart  alone  that 
could  force  the  eifort  of  concluding  the  complaining  epistle.  She 
proceeds — 

"  For  God's  sake,  Sir,  hold  me  excused  that  I  write  not  myself  to  your 
Grace,  for  I  have  no  leisure  at  this  time;  but  with  a  wish  I  would  I  were 
with  your  Grace  now,  and  many  times  more.  And  for  this  that  I  have 
written  to  your  Grace,  it  is  very  true ;  but  I  pray  God  I  may  find  it  well 
for  my  welfare  hereafter.  IS'o  more  to  your  Grace  at  this  time ;  but  our 
Lord  have  you  in  his  keeping.  Written  with  the  hand  of  your  humble 
daughter. 

"  Margaret," 

The  next  day  there  was  another  grand  presentation  of  the 
Scottish  ladies  to  the  Q^ueen,  a  public  dinner  and  playing  with 
blunted  swords  and  spears  in  the  Court  of  Holyrood,  the  Q^ueen 
again  sitting  in  royal  state  in  the  bay-window  of  her  presence- 
chamber  during  the  tourney,  when  many  spears  were  broken  in 
her  presence. 

A  day  of  solemn  festival  was  held  on  the  succeeding  Sunday, 
August  13  ;  it  seems  to  have  been  the  farewell  feast  to  such  of 
the  English  party  as  were  yet  remaining.  The  Glueen  was  led 
to  church  accompanied  by  the  Earl  of  Surrey — a  nobleman  who 
occupied,  as  our  readers  have  just  ascertained  by  her  letter,  a 
very  low  place  in  her  good  graces.  "  She  was  arrayed  in  a 
gown  of  purple-figured  velvet,  bordered  with  gold  thread,  and 
furred  with  ermines  ;  it  was  made  with  great  rebrasT  The 
rebras  were  large  trumpet-shaped  sleeves.  The  portraits  of  Anne 
of  Bretagne,  Q,ueen  of  Louis  XII.,  and  Anne  Boleyn  are  in  this 
costume  :  the  fashion  lasted  almost  through  the  reign  of  Henry 
VIII. 


60  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Clueen  Margaret  likewise  wore  a  rich  girdle  and  a  splendid 
collar  or  necklace  of  inerrene,  or  colored  gems  ;  Lady  Surrey 
bore  her  train,  assisted  by  Sir  John  Hume.  The  King  followed 
her,  attended  by  his  great  officers.  He  was  royally  robed  in 
cloth  of  gold  furred  with  marten  ;  his  doublet  was  crimson  satin 
lined  with  cloth  of  gold.  To  his  bonnet  hung  "  a  rich  bag,"  and 
his  shirt  was  embroidered  with  fine  pierrerie  and  pearls.  When 
he  arrived  at  his  curtained  closet,  he  made  a  humble  reverence 
to  his  (olueen,  as  she  did  also  to  him. 

"At  the  offering  were  assembled  three  noble  Scottish  lords, 
who  were  that  day  to  be  made  earls  in  the  Glueen's  presence. 
When  mass  was  now  over,  they  were  presented  to  the  King  by 
Marchmont  Herald,  They  promised  to  hold  their  oaths,  and 
then  the  King  of  Scotland  girdled  them  with  their  swords  above 
their  shoulders.  Then  the  King  took  the  Glueen's  hand  and  led 
her  to  the  company  ;  but  because  it  rained,  her  Grace  passed 
through  the  King's  chamber  to  enter  her  own.  The  Earl  of 
Surrey  dined  with  the  King,  and  other  lords  dined  with  him  ; 
after  dinner  a  morality  was  played  by  John  English  and  his 
company  before  the  King  and  Q.ueen,  and  then  dances  were 
danced." 

"  At  the  accustomed  hour.  King  James  went  to  even-song;" 
but  the  Glueen,  who  seems  to  have  declined  such  constant  church- 
going,  was  not  there  ;  "  therefore  the  making  of  some  knights 
who  were  to  have  been  made  for  love  of  her,  was  put  off  until 
next  day."* 

Without  being  entirely  guided  by  the  English  memorialist  of 
this  remarkable  royal  marriage,  we  may  add  that  the  northern 
historians,  with  Bishop  Lesley  at  their  head,  declare  "  that  all 
was  conducted  honorably,  after  the  Scottish  fashion.  Scotchmen 
were,  at  this  time,  not  behind,  but  far  above  the  Englishmen, 
both  in  apparel,  rich  jewels,  and  massy  chains — many  ladies 
having  their  habiliments  set  with  goldsmith's  work,  garnished 
with  pearl  and  precious  stones,  being  withal  mounted  on  gallant 
and  well-trapped  horses,  which  were  comely  to  see." 

Lesley  says,  moreover,  "When  all  things  were  done  and 
finished,  the  Earl  of  Surrey,  with  all  the  English  lords,  returned 
to  their  country,  giving  great  praise,  not  only  to  the  valor  and 

1  With  these  words,  John  Young,  Somerset  Herald,  finishes  his  narrative. 
He  doubtless  returned  with  the  Earl  of  Surrey  to  England. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  61 

manhood  of  the  Scottishmen,  but  also  to  their  good  manners,  and 
the  hearty  entertainment  which  they  received  of  them  ;  and 
divers  EngUsh  ladies  and  young  gentlewomen  remained  with  the 
dueen,  who  were  after  married  to  noblemen  of  the  realm  in 
Scotland,  whose  posterity  lives  yet  in  honor  to  our  days."^ 

The  return  of  the  Enghsh  party  with  Lord  Surrey,  lell  the 
royal  new  married  pair  at  leisure  to  commence  their  plans  for 
matrimonial  felicity.  But  small  hopes  of  that  needful  ingredient 
in  the  cup  of  life  were  there  for  them.  Margaret's  letter  to  her 
father  shows  her  as  an  ill-educated  girl  of  fourteen,  not  the  most 
reasonable  period  of  human  life  in  any  station,  and  particularly 
trying  in  hers.  The  series  of  flatteries  and  adorations  she  had 
experienced  in  her  bridal  tour,  had  only  puffed  up  the  vanity 
and  presumption  to  which  the  female  character,  at  that  age,  is 
peculiarly  liable.  The  sedulous  attentions,  and  little  fond  in- 
dulgences, with  which  her  accomplished  lord  had  humanely 
endeavored  to  soothe  and  console  her  for  her  removal  from  her 
country  and  parent,  were  all  utterly  thrown  away  on  a  thankless 
and  murmuring  spirit.  Margaret  was  as  little  grateful  to  the 
Earl  of  Surrey,  for  his  successful  escort  to  the  throne  matrimonial 
of  Scotland.  All  the  return  she  makes  is  an  incendiary  endeavor 
to  sow  strife  between  him  and  the  King  her  father ;  ^  strife 
which,  in  due  time,  might  have  brought  forth  murderous  frviits. 

It  was  not  very  probable  that  a  sullen,  spoiled  child,  in  her 
thirteenth  summer,  could  prove  an  attractive  companion  to  a 
monarch  of  James  IV. 's  character,  who,  in  1503,  had  entered  his 
thirty-first  year.  Had  Margaret  Tudor  reached  one  half  the  age 
of  her  spouse,  she  might  have  had  more  success  in  disputing  his 
heart  with  the  matured  beauties  of  her  court ;  as  the  case  was, 
it  could  only  be  expected  that  she  would  grow  up  to  womanhood, 
with  the  passions  of  anger  and  jealousy  in  a  perpetual  state  of 
exercise. 

In  one  taste  alone  did  this  dissimilar  pair  agree,  which  was  in 
their  love  for  music.  The  Tudor  race  had  retained  their  Celtic 
predilection  for  that  science,  and  all  practically  excelled  in  it. 
The  royal  Stuarts  possessed  much  instrumental  skill,  together 
with  the  inspiration  of  true  poetry.  Thus,  whatsoever  discrep- 
ancies there  might  have  been  between  James  Stuart  and  Margaret 

1  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ros3,  History  of  Scotland.     Bannatyne,  vol.  xi.  p.  71. 
'  See  her  letter  before-quoted  to  Henry  VII. 


62  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Tudor  in  age,  temper,  and  talents,  they  were  united  in  their 
musical  predilections. 

The  King's  bounty  was  overflowing  to  Margaret's  musicians, 
for  their  performances  at  the  marriage,  as  his  privy-purse  expenses 
bear  witness.  On  his  wedding-day,  he  presented  to  her  eight 
English  minstrels  the  large  sum  of  forty  French  crowns  ;  to  the 
trumpets  of  England,  £28  ;  to  dueen  Margaret's  four  minstrels 
who  remained  with  her,  £7  ;  but  her  five  loud  minstrels  had 
£28.  The  King  had  £3  10s.  given  out  to  him,  to  play  at  cards, 
on  the  evening  of  August  21,  It  seems  that  he  did  not  decrease 
the  contents  of  his  card-purse,  but  with  right  princely  spirit  he 
gave  all  his  winnings  to  Glueen  Margaret's  English  harpers.  A 
few  days  afterward,  the  King  presented  to  Bountas,  a  cornet- 
player,  who  played  in  Glueen  Margaret's  chamber,  twenty-eight 
shillings.  The  following  month,  her  "  loud  minstrels,"  and  her 
cornet-player,  got  double  fees  ;  and  Bountas  was  presented,  by 
the  King,  with  "  new  quhisellis"  or  whistles.^ 

These  last  benefactions  were  on  account  of  the  festivities  at  his 
dueen's  coronation  ;  for  soon  after  he  convened  his  Parliament  of 
the  three  estates  of  his  kingdom,  Margaret  was  solemnly  crowned 
in  the  Parliament  Hall. 

James  IV.  then  commenced  a  progress  through  the  southern 
provinces  of  his  kingdom,  to  show  his  subjects  his  English  bride. 
Bishop  Lesley,  the  Scottish  historian,  takes  care  to  note  how 
nobly  they  were  entertained  at  abbeys,  and  what  rich  purses  of 
gold  were  always  devoted  by  the  Church  of  Scotland  to  their 
royal  visitors — one  to  the  Glueen  as  well  as  to  the  King. 

Margaret  was  still  a  child,  therefore  notations  of  pleasure  and 
amusements  constitute  the  sole  records  of  her  married  life  for  a 
year  or  two.  The  anniversary  of  her  marriage  in  1504,  was 
spent  at  the  fortress  of  Dunottar,  of  which  the  head  of  the  noble 
family  of  Keith  was  then  castellan.  Here,  in  August,  James 
IV.  kept  court  with  princely  cheer,  and  gave,  in  the  course  of 
the  month,  many  donations  to  Margaret's  musical  band.  "  Two 
English  songstresses,  who  sang  in  the  pavilion  to  the  Q,ueen  at 
Dunottar  Castle,  had  a  donation  of  27s.  :  the  King  likewise 
ordered  a  benefaction  of  18s.  to  the  chield  that  played  on  the 
monochord."^     dueen  Margaret's  Inter  had  fees  amounting  to 

^  Accounts  of  the  Lord  Treasurer ;  in  the  Register  House,  Edinburgh. 
^  Ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  63 

56s.,  likewise  Pate  Harper,  who  played  the  clarcha  ;  the  English 
boy  Cuddy,  and  Souter  the  Inter,  got  a  share  in  a  largess  of  £3 
10s.,  given  by  the  royal  Stuart.  The  Glueen's  Inter  was  given 
a  donation  to  get  his  lute  out  of  pawn ;  four  Italian  minstrels 
had  fees  to  clear  them  of  the  town  ;  and  Hog  the  tale-teller,  or 
diseur,  was  given  a  benefaction  of  13s.^ 

Dunottar  Castle,  in  the  county  of  Kincardine,  the  scene  of  the 
royal  festivities  where  all  these  musicians  found  employment  in 
August,  1504,  was  a  mighty  fortress,  situated  on  a  perpendicular 
rock,  with  a  table-land  of  several  acres  in  extent  on  the  summit. 
The  site  projects  into  the  sea,  and  is  almost  insular.  It  is,  at 
present,  one  of  the  most  majestic  ruins  in  Scotland.'^ 

As  Dunottar  was  in  that  day  impregnable,  James  IV.  had 
probably  removed  his  dueen  thither  for  security,  during  the  dis- 
turbances among  the  clans  and  the  Lords  of  the  Isles,  which 
almost  raised  a  civil  war  that  summer  in  Scotland.^ 

The  young  Glueen  brought  Scotland  an  heir,  February  10, 
1505-G  ;  but  she  hung  between  life  and  death  for  many  days 
afterward.  Her  sad  condition  could  not,  however,  restrain  her 
husband's  excessive  joy  for  the  birth  of  a  living  heir-apparent  to 
Scotland;  he  presented  the  lady  v/ho  brought  him  the  glad 
tidings  with  a  cup  of  silver,  heaped  with  a  hundred  gold  pieces. 
The  child  was  born  at  Holyrood,  and  baptized  with  suitable 
triumph.* 

The  young  mother  being  in  a  desperate  state  of  health,  her 

1  Jjord  Treasurer's  Accounts,  Edinburgh  Register  House. 

2  This  place,  which  has  acquired  melancholy  celebrity  as  a  state  prison, 
has  in  later  and  happier  days  been  graphically  described  by  that  accom- 
phslied  lyrical  poet,  the  late  lamented  Carohne,  Baroness  Nairne  (author 
of  "The  Land  of  the  Leal"),  in  her  spirited  historical  ballad  commemorating 
the  preservation  of  the  crown,  scepter,  and  regalia  of  Scotland,  in  which 
these  lines  occur — 

"  On  fair  Kincardine's  rocky  coast 
There's  few  that  dinna  ken  yet 
Dunottar's  Castle,  bald  and  strong, 
Stands  towering  o'er  the  main  yet." 

— See  Musical  Lays  from  Strathearn,  now  first  published  with  the  author's 
name. 

^  Sir  John  Sinclair,  Statistical  Account,  Ac,  vol.  ii. 

*  Balfour's  Annals.  He  gives  the  date  1507,  of  the  birth  of  Margaret's 
first-born  son. 


64  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

royal  spouse  testified  the  greatest  anxiety  for  her  amendment— 
not,  however,  by  remaining  at  home  for  the  purpose  of  watching 
over  her,  but  by  performing  a  pilgrimage  on  foot  to  the  shrine  of 
St.  Ninian,  on  the  coast  of  Galloway  ;  this,  he  persuaded  his 
suffering  partner,  would  greatly  conduce  to  her  recovery. 

King  James  was  attended  by  his  four  Italian  minstrels,  who, 
when  they  arrived  at  the  shrine,  were  completely  exhausted  by 
their  long  pedestrian  expedition,  and  were  forced  to  be  carried 
back  to  Holyrood  on  horses  hired  for  the  occasion.  The  King, 
who  was  as  hardy  and  manly  as  any  of  his  countrymen,  perse- 
vered in  all  he  had  vowed,  and  withal  in  some  other  journey ings 
more  than  he  made  public.  However,  his  loving  lieges  were 
exceedingly  edified  by  his  tender  attentions  in  making  this 
pedestrian  pilgrimage  for  the  benefit  of  Margaret's  health,  espe- 
cially when  it  was  found  that  her  recovery  was  perfectly  coinci- 
dent with  the  moment  at  which  her  King  offered,  in  her  behalf, 
at  the  shnne  of  St.  Ninians.^  Margaret  had,  nevertheless,  subse- 
quently reason  to  know  that  James  would  have  shown  more  true 
love  to  her  by  staying  at  home  ;  for  it  was  on  this  pilgrimage 
that  he  renewed  his  acquaintance  Avith  the  handsome  Jane 
Kennedy,  mother  of  his  son  James  Stuart,  then  under  the  tuition 
of  Erasmus  at  Rotterdam.  James  IV.  afterward  imposed  this 
boy  on  the  C  hurch  of  Scotland  as  Primate. 

Besides  the  usual  share  of  trouble  and  crime  incurred  by  such 
connections,  the  King  of  Scotland  entered  into  a  life-long  enmity 
with  Archibald,  Earl  of  Angus,  Old  Bell-the-Cat,  who  was  wooing 
Jane  Kennedy  for  honorable  matrimony.  Notwithstanding  all 
the  scandals  regarding  the  King  and  Jane,  the  old  Earl  carried 
her  off,  and  actually  married  her,  although,  in  the  course  of  the 
contention,  James  IV.  imprisoned  him. 

When  the  young  Q,ueen  wholly  recovered,  she  likewise  made 
a  pilgrimage  of  thanksgiving,  on  a  most  magnificent  scale,  to  St. 
Ninians.  Margaret  traveled  in  a  litter  to  the  Galloway  coast. 
Her  baggage  took  seventeen  pack-horses  to  carry  it ;  her  chapel 
plate  and  furniture,  called  the  Queen's  "  chapel-graith,"  were 
borne  in  two  coffers.  James's  wardrobe  required  three  horses  to 
bear  it.  He,  as  well  as  the  Q,ueen,  was  attended  by  his  chap- 
lains and  "chapel-gear."  The  royal  pilgrimage  lasted  twenty 
days.' 

1  History  of  Galloway,  vol.  i.  p.  422.  2  History  of  Galloway. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  65 

"  The  Clueen  was  sore  vexed  with  sickness  that  year  ;"  ^  nor 
was  her  health  amended  by  the  loss  of  her  first-born,  who  died 
at  Stirling  Castle  when  he  was  little  more  than  a  twelvemonth 
old,  February  17,  1506-7.  His  preceptor,  the  Bishop  of  Gal- 
loway, expired  exactly  at  the  same  time.  The  poor  young  Glueen 
passed  the  first  years  of  her  marriage  in  a  state  of  invalidism  : 
moreover  she  had  the  vexation  of  seeing  her  husband's  heart 
disputed  by  a  crowd  of  rivals. 

The  Christmas  of  1507  was  kept  merrily  at  old  Holy  rood. 
Among  other  expenses  for  the  festive  proceedings  of  the  court, 
thirty  dozen  of  little  bells  were  provided  and  delivered  to  Thomas 
Boswell,  for  the  dancers  at  the  royal  revels  on  the  last  night  of 
the  old  year,  1507.  One  of  the  canons  of  Holyrood  was  paid  Id. 
for  his  pains  in  mending  the  organ  there. 

The  Valentine-tide  was  kept  joyously  with  music,  minstrels, 
and  mummers.  If  Q.ueen  Margaret  were  ill  it  was  for  no  lack 
of  gayety.  King  James  himself  went  and  "  fetched  a  female 
minstrel  whose  name  (or  character-name)  was  Wantonness,  and 
gart  her  sing  in  the  Glueen's  chamber;"^  and  Wantonness  re- 
ceived for  her  pains  13s.  of  the  royal  bounty.  Again,  on  the 
following  "  March  6,  Wantonness  and  her  twa  marrows  (asso- 
ciates) wha  sang  with  her,  had  a  gratuity  of  13s."  Among  the 
numerous  minstrels  entertained  and  paid  at  the  court  of  James 
and  Margaret  may  be  reckoned  O'Donnel,  an  Irish  harper,  to 
whom  was  given  the  handsome  fee  of  seven  pounds.  "  Ane  bard- 
wife,  called  Agnes  Cargill,"  had  13s.  ;  the  harper  on  the  Erse 
clarcha  had  9s.  ;  Gray  Steil,  the  luter,  had  Qs."^ — his  name  of 
Gray  Steil  was  probably  derived  from  a  national  ballad  so  called, 
as  King  James  gave  two  of  his  fiddlers  9s.  for  singing  the  song  of 
Gray  Steil  to  his  satisfaction. 

James  IV.  was  at  the  height  of  his  prosperity  and  good  fortune 
in  the  summer  of  1508.  He  saw  his  alliance  sedulously  courted 
by  the  King  of  France,  Louis  XII.,  who  sent  a  solemn  embassy  to 
him  in  May,  when  Edinburgh  was  the  scene  of  splendid  fetes,  to 
welcome  the  French  nobles.  An  unknown  knight,  called  "the 
Wild  Knight,"  who  was  surrounded  by  attendants  like  "  salvage 
men  in  their  attire,"  won  great  renown  at  the  jousting  held  in 
honor  of  the   embassy  from   Louis   XII.,  June,  1508.     All  the 

^  Bishop  Lesley,  History  of  Scotland. 

2  Treasurer's  Accounts,  Register  House  MS.,  Edinburgh,  ^  Ibid. 


66  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

French  knights  were  reversed,  one  after  the  other,  before  the 
powerful  and  skillful  arm  of  the  Wild  Knight,  to  the  great  satis- 
faction of  the  (dueen  and  all  Englishmen  and  Scotchmen  present. 
At  the  giving  of  the  prizes,  the  gallant  King  of  Scotland  claimed 
a  prize  as  his  due,  "  because  he  was  the  conquering  "Wild  Knight." 
The  somewhat  inhospitable  course  of  cuffs,  bruises,  and  down- 
falls, with  which  the  royal  James  had  entertained  his  French 
guests,  was  succeeded  by  their  invitation  to  a  grand  festival,  called 
a  Round  Table  of  King  Arthur. 

The  King  of  Scotland  remembering  all  the  parade  that  his 
wise  father-in-law,  Henry  VII.,  had  made  regarding  the  restora- 
tion of  the  blood  of  King  Arthur  to  the  throne  of  England,  re- 
solved to  give  the  child,  whom  his  Glueen,  Margaret,  was  daily 
expected  to  bring,  the  truly  British  name  of  Arthur.  But  the 
infant  proved  a  girl,  and  Margaret  languished  long,  in  great  peril 
of  her  life.     Her  daughter  died  as  soon  as  christened.^ 

The  Q/Ueen  appears  to  have  passed  the  autumn  at  Lochmaben 
Castle,  the  noble  structure  on  the  Lochmaben  Lake,  in  Annan- 
dale,  where  Robert  Bruce  is  said  to  have  been  born.  It  is  possi- 
ble that  the  King  of  Scotland  took  her  there  in  hopes  that  their 
expected  otfspimg  might  draw  its  first  breath  in  the  natal  place 
of  his  renowned  ancestor.  The  only  memento  of  the  royal  sojourn 
at  Lochmaben  is  a  quaint  entry  in  the  King's  Compotus,'^  record- 
ing "  a  gratification  of  14s.  to  the  crooked  Vicar  of  Dumfries,  who 
sung  to  the  King  and  Q,ueen  at  Lochmaben,  September  17,  1508." 

James  IV.  had  left  his  Glueen  to  keep  court  at  Holyrood  by 
herself,  while  he  went  in  the  beginning  of  April  1508  to  perform 
his  devotions  at  his  favorite  haunt  the  shrine  of  St.  Ninians  at 
Whitehorn,  where  report  again  whispered  that  the  fair  lady  Jane 
Kennedy  was  the  real  attraction.  During  his  absence  Dr.  West, 
an  envoy  from  his  father-in-law  Henry  VII.,  tired  of  waiting  at 
Berwick  for  a  safe-conduct,  came  to  Edinburgh,  where  he  had 
several  interviews  with  the  young  Q,ueen.  His  business  was  to 
explain  why  Henry  VII.  had  arrested  James's  kinsman,  the  Earl 
of  Arran,  and  his  brother  Sir  Patrick  Hamilton — it  was  because 
they  had  taken  the  liberty  of  traveling  through  England  for  em- 
barkation to  France,  without  a  passport  or  safe-conduct. 

Q.ueen  Margaret  labored  in  A'^ain,  when  her  husband  returned, 
to  procure  an  interview  for  Dr.  West.     James  was  seriously  dis- 

^  Lesley's  History  of  Scotland.  "  Ancient  Music  of  Scotland. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  67 

pleased  with  the  capture  of  his  kinsmen.  He  sent  word  to  Dr. 
West  "that  he  was  too  busy  with  superintending  the  making 
gunpowder,  and  with"  the  very  incomprehensible  occupation  of 
"  scotting  hewmyss/  to  spare  time  to  speak  to  him." 

The  Q.ueen  took  the  part  of  her  sire  with  more  warmth  than 
discretion.  Sir  Patrick  Hamilton,  meantime,  appeared  at  the 
Scottish  court — whether  he  had  escaped  or  came  on  his  parole  is 
not  explained  ;  but  he  raised  doleful  complaints  to  the  King,  of 
the  ill-treatment  that  his  brother  Arran  received  in  his  place  of 
detention  in  England.  The  Glueen  contradicted  those  who  re- 
peated this  saying,  affirming  "that  Sir  Patrick  had  assured  her 
that  her  father  had  entertained  the  Earl  of  Arran  very  well." 
An  inquiry  took  place  in  presence  of  the  King,  the  dueen.  Sir 
Patrick  Hamilton,  and  Dr.  AVest.  The  result  was,  that  Sir  Pat- 
rick had  really  told  the  Glueen  "that  his  brother  had  been  very 
ill  entreated  by  her  royal  father."  ^ 

The  news  of  the  decease  of  Henry  YII.  soon  afterward  arrived 
from  England.  The  loss  of  her  affectionate  father  was  the  heav- 
iest grief  with  which  Margaret's  young  life  had  been  visited. 
This  was  soon  after  followed  by  that  of  her  grandmother,  the 
Countess  of  Richmond,  who,  for  a  few  weeks,  had  exercised  the 
office  of  regent  for  Henry  VIII. 

The  marriage  of  Henry  VIII.  and  Katharine  of  Arragon,  the 
widow  of  Arthur,  Prince  of  Wales,  had  taken  place  peacefully 
and  prosperously.  Henry  VIII.,  Margaret,  and  their  young  sister 
Mary  Tudor,  their  aunt  Katharine  Plantagenet,  and  her  son,  were 
all  that  remained  of  the  once  numerous  descendants  of  Edward 
IV.  The  English  and  Scottish  thrones,  as  Margaret's  children 
had  hitherto  died  in  their  infancy,  were  singularly  destitute  of 
heirs-male. 

In  the  autumn  of  1509,  Gtueen  Margaret  again  brought  forth  a 
living  son.  He  was  born  at  Holyrood,  October  20.^  The  young 
mother  insisted  that  the  heir-apparent  of  Scotland  and  heir-pre- 
sumptive of  England  should  bear  the  national  name  of  Arthur, 
in  remembrance  of  her  favorite  brother — a  measure  which,  how- 
ever, savored  more  of  family  affection  and  gratitude  than  of 
policy.  The  boy  was  christened  Arthur,  and  proclaimed,  with 
great  state.  Prince  of  Scotland  and  Lord  of  the  Isles. 

1  So  written,  Cott.  MS.,  Caligula,  B.  viii.  i  151. 

^  Cott.  MS.,  Caligula,  B.  viii.  f.  151.  3  Lesley,  p.  80. 


68  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

The  legacy  bequeathed  by  Arthur,  Prmce  of  Wales,  to  his 
sister  Margaret,  may  be  remembered.  Whether  Henry  VII.  con- 
ceived that  the  young  Prince  had  no  right  to  bequeath  his  per- 
sonals and  valuables,  or  whether  he  chose  to  retain  them  in  his 
grasp,  is  not  easy  to  define  ;  but  it  is  certain  that  Glueen  Marga- 
ret was  in  a  great  state  of  excitement  concerning  them.  Very 
soon  after  her  father's  death,  she  agitated  the  matter  with  her 
brother  Henry  VIII.,  who  answered  her  civilly  ;  but  the  goods 
and  chattels  were  nevertheless  not  forthcoming. 

The  Q.ueen  lost  her  infant  son,  Arthur,  in  July,  1511.  He 
died  at  Edinburgh  Castle.  Margaret  and  James  were  deeply 
afflicted  at  this  loss,  and  left  Holyrood  suddenly  in  consequence. 
The  unfortunate  young  mother  was  again  "  sore  vexit  with  sick- 
ness." 

When  the  royal  pair  returned  to  the  capital,  among  the 
amusements  devised  to  divert  Q,ueen  Margaret's  grief,  a  play 
was  performed  in  her  presence  at  Holyrood,  October  12,  loll. 
The  day  is  remarkable,  because  the  illustrious  poet,  David 
Lindsay  of  the  Mount,  is  first  mentioned  then,  as  one  of  the 
royal  household.  He  acted  in  the  play,  and  received  from  the 
royal  stores  a  dress  of  blue  and  yellow  tafiety  to  attire  himself 
for  the  part  he  performed.^ 

That  year  and  ensuing  spring  were  remarkably  unhealthy. 
A  comet  had  been  seen  casting  beams  like  a  sun,  which  glared 
for  twenty-one  nights  :  it  frightened  the  King  and  Q,ueen  into 
fits  of  ultra  devotion.  Although  Margaret  had  been  thrice  the 
mother  of  living  children,  she,  like  her  sister-in-law,  Katharine 
of  Arragon,  was  still  childless.  By  the  King's  advice,  she  took 
a  pilgrimage  to  St.  Duthois  of  Hoss,  and  returned  to  Edinburgh 
about  July  10,  to  assist  at  the  reception  of  her  brother's  ambas- 
sadors. Lord  Dacre  and  Sir  Robert  Drury.  The  ensuing  April 
11,  1512,^  Q,ueen  Margaret  was  delivered  at  her  palace  of  Lin- 
lithgow of  "  ane  fair  Prince,"  who  was  shortly  after  baptized 
James,  and  proclaimed  Prince  of  Scotland  and  the  Isles.  He 
lived  to  be  James  V. 

Meantime  a  fierce  naval  contest  occurred  between  the  fleets 
of  England  and  Scotland.  The  ground  of  dispute  was  alleged 
piracy ;  the  brave  Scottish  Admiral  Barton  fell,  and  his  ships 

1  Lord  Lindsay's  Lives  of  the  Lindsays. 

2  Lesley's  History,  p.  84. 


M  A  R  G  A  R  E  T     T  U  D  O  R.  69 

were  captured  by  Sir  Edward  Howard  —  terrible  losses  to 
James  IV. 

Lord  Dacre  and  Dr.  West  came  when  Margaret's  infant  son 
was  about  a  month  old,  May  4/  to  hear  the  statement  the  Q,ueen 
made  of  her  claims  on  the  disputed  legacy  from  her  ow^n  lips. 
The  following  interview  is  extracted  from  the  dispatches  of 
Dr.  West  to  his  King,  Henry  VIII.  She  had  removed  from  Lin- 
lithgow with  her  boy,  to  her  husband's  royal  seat  of  Stirling 
Castle.  The  conversation  took  place  after  dinner.^  Directly 
Dr.  West  was  introduced,  Q,ueen  Margaret  asked,  writes  he — 

"  If  your  Grace  had  sent  her  legacy  ?" 

West  answered,  "Yea,  which  I  was  to  deliver  to  her,  so  that 
the  King  of  Scots  would  promise  to  keep  the  treaty  of  peace." 

"And  not  else  ?"  asked  Glueen  Margaret. 

"  No,"  replied  Dr.  West,  "  And  if  the  King  of  Scots,  your 
husband,  persists  in  war,  the  King  of  England,  my  master,  will 
not  only  keep  the  legacy,  but  take  from  him  the  best  towns  he 
has  in  Scotland." 

What  Queen  Margaret  w^ould  have  answered  to  this  uncivil 
rejoinder  Dr.  West  declares  he  knew  not,  for  King  James  entered 
her  withdrawing-room,  and  the  conversation  ceased. 

The  war  mentioned  by  Dr.  West  was  on  the  eve  of  exploding 
between  Henry  VIIL,  and  Louis  XII.  James  of  Scotland  meant 
to  rank  himself  among  the  allies  of  France.  Henry,  being  young 
and  pugnacious,  had  demanded  of  Louis  XII.  the  payment  of 
"  the  pension"  for  which  Edward  IV.  had  compounded  his  claims 
on  the  French  provinces,  the  inheritance  of  his  ancestress,  Eleanor 
of  Aquitaine.  It  amounted  to  about  50,000  louis  ;  and,  as  if 
for  a  lesson  to  the  destructive  ambition  of  princes,  it  had  cost 
several  lives  for  every  coin  received  :  for  it  has  never  been  paid 
but  to  three  very  prosperous  sovereigns  of  England,  to  keep  them 
quiet — viz.  Edward  IV.,  Henry  VIIL,  and  Charles  II.,  and  very 
few  installments  of  this  blood-bought  annuity  did  either  receive. 
Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  however,  notices  that  Henry  VIIL  claimed 
his  pension,  and  got  it,  from  Louis  XII. 

As  King  James  w^as  resolved  to  adhere  to  the  ancient  alliance 
of  France,  Dr.  West  demanded  leave  to  depart.     The  King  re- 


1  Lesley's  History,  p.  84. 

2  Sir  Henry  Ellis's  Historical  Letters,  first  series,  vol.  i 


70  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

quested  him  ^  "  first  to  go  and  see  the  dueen  and  the  young 
Prince  at  Linlithgow;"  adding,  "that  Glueen  Margaret  had 
tokens  for  the  King  her  brother  and  Gtueen  Katharine  " 

"Item,"  adds  the  reverend  envoy,'^  "on  Sunday  afternoon  I 
rode  to  Linlithgow,  and  came  thither  by  four  o'clock.  As  soon 
as  I  alighted,  her  Grace,  Q.ueen  Margaret,  sent  Sir  John  Sinclair 
for  me.  Howbeit,  '  she  told  me  she  had  done  the  be3t  that  was 
in  her  power,  and  would  continue  so  to  do.'  And  without  further 
communication  about  her  legacy,  or  any  other  matte  r,  she  deliv- 
ered me  the  tokens  for  your  Grace,  the  Glueen,  and  the  Princess 
(her  sister  Mary).  Glueen  Margaret  then  commr  nded  that  I 
should  be  taken  to  see  the  Prince,  and  so  I  was.  "Verily,  he  is  a 
right  fair  child,  and  a  large  one  for  his  age."  ^ 

The  beautiful  babe  that  dueen  Margaret  displayijd  with  pride 
to  the  English  envoy  was  afterward  James  Y.  Even  at  that 
tender  age,  he  had  been  given  in  charge  to  Sir  David  Lindsay 
of  the  Mount,  who  was  appointed  by  James  IV.  to  be  gentleman- 
usher  to  the  royal  infant.  He  is  called  both  "  the  Prince's  usher" 
and  "  the  keeper  of  the  King's  grace."  He  entered  on  his  office 
the  day  the  heir  of  Scotland  was  born.  Never  did  an  infant 
prince  receive  more  tender  service  from  any  nurse  than  the  son 
of  Q,ueen  Margaret  from  this  noble  and  learned  gentleman.  It 
was  doubtless  owing  to  his  judicious  treatment  that  the  infant 
Prince  did  not  follow  his  brethren  and  sister  to  the  grave. 

There  are  few  prettier  passages  in  historical  biography  than 
the  lines  wherein  Sir  David  Lindsay  describes  the  manner  in 
which  he  amused,  and,  at  the  same  time,  awoke  the  dawning 
intellect  of  the  young  royal  Stuart,  whom  he  bore  on  his  arm 
until  he  could  run  alone.  From  the  testimony  of  Sir  David  him- 
self, it  appears  that  Q,ueen  Margaret  had  provided  her  infait 
Prince  both  with  nurse  and  governess ;  but  their  occupations 
must  have  been  complete  sinecures,  since  Sir  David  of  the  Mount 
did  nothing  but  play  with  him  by  day,  and  watch  him  at  night. 
These  employments  of  a  royal  baby's  vice-chamberlain  are  fully 
confirmed  by  comparison  with  the    Bruges   Journal    of  Lewis 

»  Ellis's  Historical  Letters.  ""  Ibid. 

^  Dr.  West's  letters  are  dateless ;  but  Bishop  Lesley  fixes  his  embassy 
May  4,  1512.  The  date  of  a  letter  of  Queen  Margaret,  on  the  same  sub- 
ject, is  April  9th — therefore,  it  can  not  belong  to  this  visit ;  but  the  contr* 
versy  continued  till  the  battle  of  Flodden. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  71 

Gruthuse,^  who  saw  Sir  Richard  Yaughan  (afterward  beheaded 
at  Pontefract  by  Richard  III.)  taking  similar  care  of  Edward  Y. 
in  his  infancy  ;  like  the  stout  Earl  of  Warwick,  also,  who  did 
not  disdain  to  dandle  the  infant  Henry  YL,  and  thought  it  no 
shame  to  be  depicted  with  his  King  of  six  months  old  on  his 
warlike  arm.'^ 

"  I  take  the  Glueen's  grace,  thy  mother,  to  witness,"  says  Sir 
David  Lindsay,  "  likewise  my  Lord  Chancellor,  your  nurse,  and 
your  old  governess,  how,  when  you  slept,  it  was  nightly  close  to 
my  cheek  ;  how  often,  in  the  day,  I  bore  your  grace  on  my  back, 
even  as  a  packman.  But  sometimes  you  bestrode  my  neck, 
dancing  and  jumping,  with  many  a  nod  and  smile.  Nay,  the 
very  first  syllables  you  lisped  were  meant  as  my  name,  being  Pa 
Da  Lyne  ;  and  this  you  said  that  I  might  play  on  my  lute  to 
divert  you."  However,  it  is  doing  great  wrong  to  the  faithful 
Sir  David  to  translate  into  plain  prose,  for  the  benefit  of  those 
who  love  not  the  sight  of  metre,  his  naive  and  pleasant  lines, 
which,  after  all,  give  the  same  information,  only  many  degrees 
better,  as  follows  : — 

"  I  entered  to  thy  majesty 
The  day  of  thy  nativity ; 
I  pray  thy  grace  for  to  consider, 
Thou  hast  made  many  lords  and  lairds, 
And  given  them  many  rich  rewards, 
To  them  which  were  full  far  to  seek, 
When  I  lay  nightly  by  thy  cheek, 
I  take  tlie  Queen,  her  grace,  thy  mother, 
My  Lord  the  Chancellor,  and  other. 
Thy  nurse,  and  thy  old  mistress,^ 
I  take  them  all  to  bear  witness. 
Old  Willy  Dale,4  were  he  alive, 
My  life  full  well  he  could  describe, 
How,  as  a  packman  bears  his  pack, 
I  bore  your  Grace  upon  my  back. 
Sometime  you  strode  upon  my  neck, 
Dancing  with  many  a  bend  and  beck. 
The  first  syllabs  that  thou  didst  mute, 
"Were  '  Pa  Da  Lyne  on  the  lute.'  " 

These  "syllabs,"  as  Sir  David  terms  the  first  accents  of  the 
1  Archseologia.  "^  Beauchamp  MSS.,  British  Museum. 

'  The  infant  Prince's  governess. 
*  Some  officer  of  the  royal  infant's  establishment. 


72  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

infant  Prince,  were  supposed  to  mean,  "  Play,  Davy  Lindsay,  on 
the  lute."  The  afiectionate  David  describes  how  thereupon  he 
snatched  up  the  lute,  and  played  "  twenty  springs,"  or  tunes. 
But  the  musical  faculties  of  his  charge,  when  once  excited,  never 
let  David  have  repose  from  the  instrument : — 

"  From  play  thou'st  never  let  me  rest ; 
But  Giakerton  ^  thou  likest  the  best." 

The  King  and  dueen  of  Scotland  remained  malcontent  with 
England  the  whole  winter.  James  could  not  forgive  the  loss  of 
his  favorite  seaman,  Barton ;  while  Margaret  led  every  one  a 
weary  life  concerning  the  detention  of  her  legacy.  She  was  ill 
in  health,  and  expected  sympathy  and  consolation  from  her  brother. 
Dr.  West  was  sent  again  to  confer  with  her  on  the  subject  of 
dispute.  He  arrived  in  Edinburgh,  March  16,  1513. '^  He  brought 
letters  of  condolence  to  the  Glueen,  on  her  illness,  from  Henry 
VIII.,  and  many  promises  respecting  the  legacy  ;  but  he  certainly 
3ame  empty-handed,  and  unprovided  with  any  means  of  payment. 
Henry  persisted  in  declaring  that  he  would  only  deliver  the  goods 
to  his  sister  in  case  Scotland  remained  at  peace  with  him  ;  and 
King  James,  determining  to  maintain  his  alliance  with  France, 
to  appease  Margaret  promised  "  to  give  her  as  many  jewels,  and 
better  and  richer  abuilzements,"  than  those  her  brother  unjustly 
kept  from  her. 

She  wrote  the  following  letter ''  to  Henry  VIII.  by  Dr.  West — 

"  Right  excellent,  right  high  and  mighty  Prince,  our  dearest  and  best  be- 
loved Brother. 

"  We  commend  us  unto  you  in  our  most  hartlie  wise.  Your  ambassador, 
Doctor  West,  delivered  us  your  loving  letters,  in  which  ye  show  us  that, 
when  ye  heard  of  our  sickness,  ye  took  great  heaviness. 

"  Dearest  brother,  we  are  greatly  rejoiced  that  we  see  ye  have  respect  to 
our  disease ;  we  give  ye  our  hearty  thanks,  and  your  writing  is  to  us  good 
comfort. 

"We  can  not  believe  that  of  your  mind,  or  by  your  command,  we  are  so 
unfriendly  dealt  with  in  our  Fader's  ♦  legacy,  whereof  we  would  not  have 

1  This  is  one  of  the  Scottish  melodies  still  found  among  ancient  collec- 
tions. The  air  is  noted  down  in  Ancient  Scottish  Melodies,  published  for 
the  Maitbnd  Club. 

^  Lesley,  p.  86.  ^  Ellis's  Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  series  i. 

*  It  is  remarkable  that,  in  all  English  documents  or  chronicles,  the  legacy 
is  mentioned  as  that  of  her  father. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  73 

spoken  nor  -written,  had  not  the  Doctor  spoken  to  us  of  the  same  in  his  cre- 
dence. Our  husband  knows  it  is  withholden  for  his  sake,  and  will  recom- 
pense us  so  far  as  the  Doctor  shows  him.^  We  are  ashamed  therewith,  and 
would  God  never  word  had  been  thereof  It  is  not  worth  such  estimation 
as  in  your  divers  letters  of  the  same.  And  we  lack  nothing  :  our  husband  is 
ever  the  longer  the  better  to  tcs,  as  knows  God ;  who,  right  high  and  mighty 
Prince,  our  dearest  and  best  beloved  brother,  have  you  in  governance. 
"  Given  under  oiu-  signet,  at  our  Palace  of  Linlithgow,  the  9th  day  of  April. 

"  Your  loving  Sister, 

"  Margaret." 

James  lY.,  although  resolved  to  support  Louis  XII.  against  his 
brother-in-lav/,  was  anxious  for  the  preservation  of  the  peace  of 
Europe,  likely  to  be  disturbed  by  the  perpetual  requisitions  of  the 
pension  Henry  VIII.  insisted  on  receiving  from  France,  and  of  the 
legacy  his  queen  demanded  with  equal  pertinacity.  The  war 
between  Henry  and  Louis  had  commenced  with  a  naval  action 
in  Conquet  Bay,  in  which  the  victory  was  dubious ;  but  the 
death  of  the  brave  naval  commander.  Sir  Edward  Howard,  made 
it  disastrous  to  the  English.  James  IV.  regrets  this  loss,  although 
Howard  had  slain  his  Admiral  Barton  the  preceding  year  ;  and 
he  mentions  his  Glueen  as  sharing  in  these  feelings.  "  Surely, 
dear  brother,'"^  writes  the  crowned  chevalier,  when  urging  his 
earnest  desire  for  peace  in  Europe,  "  we  think  there  is  more  loss 
to  you  of  your  late  admiral  who  deceased,  to  his  great  honor  and 
laud,  than  the  advantage  that  might  have  been  to  you  of  winning 
all  the  French  galleys  and  their  equipage.  The  loss  is  great  to 
Christendom  of  that  said  umquhile  valiant  knight,  and  other  no- 
blemen that  on  both  sides  apparently  perished.  Pray  you,  dearest 
brother,  to  take  our  writings  in  gude  part,  as  our  own  is ;  for 
verily  we  are  sorry,  and  also  our  dearest  falloiv  (consort)  for  this 
loss,  through  acquaintance  of  his  fader,  that  noble  knight,  the 
Earl  of  Surrey,  who  convoyed  our  dearest  falloiv  the  Gtueen  to 
us.  Right  excellent,  right  high  and  mighty  Prince,  our  dear 
brother  and  cousin,  the  blessed  Trinity  have  you  in  tuition.  Given 
under  our  signet,  at  our  Palace  of  Edinburgh,  the  xxiii.  of 
May." 

Soon  after  the  return  of  Dr.  West  to  England,  a  decisive  de- 
mand of  Margaret's  legacy  was  made,  the  alternative  being  a 
declaration  of  war  from  the  King  of  Scotland.    If  Lindsay  of  Pits- 

1  By  the  schedule  of  the  effects.  ^  Cott.  MS.,  Caligula,  b.  vi.  f.  67. 

yoL,  I. — D 


74  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

cottie  may  be  credited,  a  very  singular  dispatch,  full  of  flattering 
promises,  was  the  answer  : — ^ 

"  My  lord  ambassador  desires  to  have  of  me  silver-work,  golden 
work,  rings,  chains,  precious  stones,  and  other  the  abuilzements 
pertaining  to  a  prince,  left  in  legacy  by  my  eldest  brother  Arthur 
to  my  eldest  sister,  Margaret,  Glueen  of  Scotland.  I  grant  thereto 
she  shall  be  well  answered  of  the  same,  and  the  double  thereof 
And  if,"  concludes  Heniy  VIII.,  "the  King  of  Scotland  will 
promise  faithfully  to  keep  his  word  by  me,  I  shall  incontinent, 
with  the  consent  of  my  nobles,  make  him  Duke  of  York  and  gov- 
ernor of  England  to  my  home-coming — for  heirs  of  England  must 
come  either  of  him  or  me,  and  I  have  none  as  yet  lawfully  ;  but 
I  hear  say  that  Margaret  my  sister  hath  a  pretty  boy,  likely  to 
grow  a  man  of  estimation.  I  pray  God  to  bless  him,  and  keep 
him  from  his  enemies,  and  give  me  grace  to  see  him  in  honor 
when  he  cometh  of  age,  that  I  may  entertain  him  according  to 
my  honor  and  duty."^ 

Subsequently,  this  curious  passage  in  the  history  of  the  royal 
family  of  Scotland  and  England  is  confirmed  by  the  pertinacity 
with  which  Q,ueen  Margaret  required  that  her  brother,  when 
destitute  of  male  heirs,  should  create  her  son  James,  Duke  of 
York.  Again,  the  remarkable  circumstance  that  the  legacy  is 
always  mentioned  as  that  of  Arthur,  Prince  of  Wales,  by  the 
Scotch  historians,  deserves  notice  ;  while  the  English  historians, 
and  even  the  letters  of  their  envoys,  allude  to  it  as  the  legacy  of 
Margaret's  father.  But  the  Scotch  are  certainly  right,  since 
Henry  VII.  left  no  such  legacy.^ 

1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  foho,  p.  108. 

2  This  is  from  an  old  folio,  the  first  edition  from  the  British  Museum. 
Dalyell's  edition  gives  the  same,  but  less  quaintly  worded. 

^  "  The  greatest  part  of  the  treasure  claimed  by  Queen  Margaret  consist- 
ed of  woman's  jewels  and  ornaments,  which  were  reported  to  be  given  by 
will  to  her  by  Arthur,  her  eldest  brother." — (Buchanan,  vol.  ii.  p.  115.) 
Other  Scottish  annalists  and  historians  assert  the  same  ;  while  the  English 
cotemporaries,  who  had  reason,  a  very  few  years  after,  to  stand  in  dread 
of  Henry  VIII.  (who  would  not  have  endured  the  publication  of  this  proof 
that  Arthur  considered  his  sister  nearer  of  kin  to  him  tlian  Katharine  of 
Arragon),  universally  declare  that  the  legacy  was  left  by  Henry  VII. — 
whereas  there  is  no  such  bequest  in  his  will,  as  may  be  proved  by  the  ex- 
amination of  that  document,  printed  in  the  Testamenta  Vetusta  of  our  late 
learned  aud  lamented  friend.  Sir  Harris  Nicolas. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  75 

King  James,  finding  that  his  brother-in-law  had  actually  sailed 
to  invade  Louis  XII.  (June  1st,  1513),  dispatched  to  the  aid  of 
his  ally  his  two  great  ships,  which  always  sailed  in  consort— the 
Margaret,  which  he  had  named  after  his  Glueen,  and  the  James  ; 
likewise  the  great  St.  Michael,  and  a  fleet  of  smaller  vessels,  under 
the  command  of  his  kinsmen,  the  Earls  of  Huntly  and  Arran. 
Like  all  marine  expeditions  under  the  command  of  soldiers,  it  was 
an  abortive  one  ;  and  the  Earl  of  Arran  incurred  his  King's  dis- 
pleasure by  his  strange  manoeuvers,  and  excited  suspicion,  that  if 
he  had  had  sufficient  seamanship,  he  would  have  run  away  with 
the  fleet. 

Meantime  James  IV.  sent  his  Lord  Lion  to  declare  war  on 
Henry  VIII.,  then  besieging  Terouenne  ;  and  the  Lord  Lion,  in 
his  herald's  dress,  being  introduced  by  G-arter,  in  his  garb  of  so- 
lemnity, to  the  presence  of  Henry  VIII.,  then  in  his  camp,  de- 
clared war  in  a  set  and  serious  oration.^  Among  the  other  wrongs 
which  had  induced  the  King  of  Scots  to  declare  war,  are  enume- 
rated the  following  : — "  Because  King  Henry  had  taken  various 
Scotchmen  out  of  our  realm,  and  chained  them  in  prison  by  the 
craigs  (necks) ;  likewise  withholding  our  wifT's  legacy  (promised 
in  divers  letters)  in  despite  of  us  ;  and  slaughter  of  Andrew  Bar- 
ton, by  your  awn  command,  quha  had  not  offended  you  or  your 
lieges — breaking  peace  and  amity  by  that  deed.'"^ 

Here  was  cause  enough  for  war.  The  naval  conflict  in  time 
of  profound  peace  •  the  death,  in  consequence,  of  James's  gallant 
seaman,  Andrew  Barton — ^to  say  nothing  of  the  cruelty  of  catch- 
ing Scotchmen  and  "chaining  them  by  the  craigs" — were  out- 
rages bad  enough,  without  the  further  aggravation  of  depriving 
Margaret  of  the  legacy,  regarding  which  she  had  made  such 
ceaseless  requisitions. 

Nevertheless,  as  soon  as  war  was  actually  declared  against  her 
brother,  Glueen  Margaret  began  to  be  excessively  full  of  lamen- 
tations for  the  measure  she  had  urged  on.  Her  jealousy  was  ex- 
cited by  the  correspondence  Anne  of  Brittany,  Q^ueen  of  France, 
commenced  with  James  IV.,  urging  him  to  do  his  devoir,  as  chev- 
alier-errant, by  invading  England,  and  marching  three  days, 
with  banners  displayed,  over  the  Borders.     In  token  that  she  had 

1  Lesley,  History  of  Scotland,  p.  89. 

2  The  date  of  the  Lord  Lion's  declaration  of  "war,  and  defiance  of  Henry 
VIII.  in  his  camp,  is  July  26,  1513. — Lesley,  p.  91. 


76  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

chosen  him  as  her  knight,  dueen  Anne  sent  him  a  ring  of  im- 
mense value,  taken  off  her  finger. 

James  was  eager  to  make  a  diversion  in  favor  of  his  ally  by 
invading  England,  but  soon  found  that  his  wedded  partner  meant 
to  let  him  have  little  quiet  in  consequence,  either  by  day  or  by 
night ;  the  cause  of  grievance  being,  that  the  Q.ueen  of  France 
had  written  him  "  ane  love-letter." 

Common  sense  might  have  represented  to  her  that  the  Glueen 
of  France  was  a  woman  dying  of  decline.  She  was,  withal,  old 
enough  to  be  her  mother.  King  James,  however  gallantly  dis- 
posed to  the  French  Q.ueen,  had  never  beheld  her ;  neither  was 
he  likely  so  to  do.  The  ideas  of  the  disputed  jewels,  and  the 
miessage  of  the  Q,ueen  of  France,  working  together  in  Margaret's 
irritable  brain,  either  produced  uneasy  visions,  or  led  her  to  feign 
some.  The  tragical  events  that  soon  after  occurred,  caused  her 
to  give  them  forth  as  prophetic — in  which  representation  she  was 
supported  by  certain  grave  chroniclers.^  The  dreams  themselves 
are  good  for  nothing  as  events  in  political  history  ;  but,  as  symp- 
toms of  the  state  of  a  person's  mind  and  thoughts,  have  a  certain 
value  in  historical  biography.  Just  as  James  IV.  was  completing 
his  musters  of  feudal  militia,  for  the  purpose  of  invading  England, 
Glueen  Margaret  one  night  awoke  him  with  sobs,  tears,  and  even 
cries.  On  being  awakened  by  her  husband,  she  assured  him  that 
she  had  been  frightened  and  perplexed  by  terrifying  dreams.  One 
time  she  thought  she  saw  him  hurled  down  a  great  precipice, 
and  crushed  and  mangled  at  the  bottom  ;  while  she  lost  one  of 
her  eyes.  Then  the  scene  changed  ;  and  she  thought  that,  while 
she  was  looking  at  her  jewels,  chains,  and  sparkling  coronets  of 
diamonds,  they  suddenly  turned  to  pearls  before  her  face — pearls 
which  are  the  emblems  of  widowhood  and  tears.  James  told 
her  these  were  wild  visions,  merely  produced  by  the  vagaries  of 
sleep,  and  not  to  be  regarded.  Upon  which  Glueen  Margaret 
commenced  a  curtain-lecture,  by  asking  him  "  Why  he  preferred 
pleasing  the  Glueen  of  France  to  her,  his  wife  and  the  mother  of 
his  children?"  She  likewise  insisted  on  going  with  him  to  the 
south.  "  If  you  will,"  she  said,  "  suffer  me  to  accompany  you  ; 
it  may  be  that  my  countrymen  will  yield  to  a  peace.  I  hear  the 
Glueen,  my  sister  (Katharine  of  Arragon),  will  be  there,  in  the 

1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie  mentions  her  dream.     Foho   edition,  British  Mu- 
seum. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  77 

army,  in  her  husband's  absence.     If  we  meet,  who  knows  what 
God,  by  our  means,  may  bring  to  pass  ?"  ^ 

James  was  incensed  at  her  proceeding  to  abuse  Anne  of  Bre- 
tagne,  the  Q,ueen  of  France,  as  a  woman  "  twice  married,  by 
means  of  divorces."  The  royal  pair  had  a  great  quarrel ;  and 
Margaret,  finding  that  if  she  dreamed  never  so  much  to  the  pur- 
pose, she  failed  of  having  her  oAvn  way,  took  other  measures. 

Indeed,  the  alledged  supernatural  occurrences  which  preceded 
the  invasion  of  England — the  principal  scene  of  which  took  place 
at  her  own  private  dwelling  of  the  palace  of  Linlithgow — when 
joined  to  her  own  proceedings  in  breaking  James's  rest  by  dream- 
ing alarming  dreams,  may  very  well  lead  to  the  inference  that 
Margaret  had  entered  surreptitiously  into  a  series  of  schemes^  lor 
working  on  the  prominent  weakness  of  her  husband's  mind — 
which  was  an  imagination  easily  excited  by  the  marvelous.  Not- 
withstanding her  aptitude  to  dream  dreams,  it  is  the  opinion  of 
her  biographer  that  she  was  herself  not  only  totally  free  from 
any  superstitious  credulity,  but  by  no  means  over  given  to  belief 
in  the  supernatural,  even  in  the  sacred  truths  of  religion.  An 
immense  mass  of  her  correspondence  is  before  us.  Never  did  any 
person  write  so  many  letters  concerning  herself  with  so  little  allu- 
sion to  belief  in  any  future  state,  or  with  such  utter  carelessness 
in  regard  to  any  world  but  the  present.  They  are,  at  the  same 
time,  totally  free  from  superstition  :  not  a  dream,  an  omen,  a 
prediction,  or  even  an  observance  of  a  lucky  or  an  unlucky  day, 
is  to  be  found  in  several  hundreds  of  very  egotistical  epistles  now 
under  examination. 

The  inference  is  therefore  plain,  that  Margaret's  dreams  Avere 
dreamed  for  the  nonce,  as  preludes  to  the  following  incident, 
which  was  probably  contrived  (or  at  least  connived  at)  by  her. 

James  IV.  had  passed  a  few  days  at  the  dueen's  palace  at 
Linlithgow,  before  he  called  together  his  feudal  muster.  At  the 
council  held  in  the  morning,  it  was  observed  that  he  was  out  of 
spirits.  In  the  evening  he  attended  vespers  at  the  stately  abbey- 
church  of  St.  Michael,  adjoining  to  the  (Queen's  palace,  for  the 
purpose  of  praying  for  the  success  of  the  expedition.^  While 
praying  in  St.  Katharine's  chapel,  near  the  porch,*  "  there  came 

1  Life  of  John  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ross.     Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  551. 

2  Tytler,  p.  56.     Pinkerton,  vol.  ii.  p.  96. 

3  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  *  Tradition  of  LinHthgow. 


78  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

ane  man,  clad  in  a  blue  gown  or  blouse,  belted  about  him  with  a 
roll  of  white  linen  :  he  had  brodikins  or  buskins  on  his  feet.  His 
head  was  bare,  bald  on  the  top,  with  yellow  locks  hanging  on 
each  side  :  his  age  about  fifty.  He  came  fast  forwards  among 
the  lords,  crying  and  speering  specially  for  the  King,  saying  '  that 
he  wanted  to  speak  with  him.'  "  It  seems  that  petitions  were 
often  presented  by  the  people  when  the  King  was  at  his  devo- 
tions. "  At  last  the  man  reached  the  desk  where  King  James 
was  at  prayers.  He  made  no  due  reverence  to  him,  or  saluta- 
tions ;  but  leaned  him  gruffimg  ^  upon  the  desk,  (bent  down  to 
the  desk),  and  spoke  thus — '  Sir  King,  my  mother  has  sent  me  to 
thee,  charging  thee  not  to  go  where  thou  art  purposed  ;  which,  if 
thou  do,  thou  shalt  not  fare  well,  nor  none  that  is  with  thee. 
Further — she  forbade  thee  not  to  mell  nor  follow  the  counsel  of 
women  ;  which  if  thou  do,  thou  wilt  be  confounded  and  brought 
to  shame.'  " 

By  the  time  these  words  were  spoken,  even-song  was  nearly 
done.  The  King  paused,  studying  to  give  him  an  answer. 
Meantime,  before  the  King's  eyes,  and  in  presence  of  all  the  lords 
about  him,  "  like  the  blink  of  the  sunbeam  or  the  whifF  of  the 
whirlwind,  the  man  evanished  away,  and  could  no  more  be 
seen."  "  I  heard,"  continues  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  "  Sir  David 
Lindsay  and  John  Inglish,  the  marshal  (who  were  at  that  time 
both  of  them  young  men,  and  special  servants  to  the  King's 
grace),  thought  to  have  taken  this  man,  that  they  might  have 
speered  further  tidings  at  him  ;   but  they  could  not  touch  him."  ^ 

The  traditions  of  Linlithgow  declare  that  another  attempt 
being  made  to  catch  the  masquerader,  who  seems  to  have 
assumed  the  character  of  St.  John,  he  eluded  the  grosp  by  slipping 
behind  a  curtain  which  concealed  a  private  stair  leading  toward 
the  upper  part  of  the  church,  and  that,  on  leaving  this  place  of 
refuge,  he  was  seen  crossing  the  court,  and  entering  Linlithgow 
Palace  by  a  small  door  under  the  chapel  window.  He  Avas  said 
to  have  been  a  servant  of  dueen  Margaret.^  Hence  the  report 
prevalent  throughout  all  history  that  he  was  suborned  by  her. 

The  distraction  of  the  times,  and  his  own  incessant  occupations, 

1  Groveling — to  bend  forward  with  the  breast  or  stomach  to  the  earth. 
An  East  Anglian  phrase,  still  in  use  among  the  people  of  Suffolk. 
^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 
3  Chambers'  Picture  of  Scotland,  vol.  ii.  p.  63. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  79 

evidently  prevented  the  King  from  inquiring  into  this  clumsy 
imposition,  which,  if  cleverly  sifted,  might  have  brought  down 
his  stern  displeasure  on  his  wedded  partner.  Like  most  intrigues 
of  the  same  species,  it  had  no  efiect  in  changing  the  current  of 
events  ;  for  James  went  immediately  to  Edinburgh  to  hasten  his 
invasion  of  England.' 

All  the  marvels  meant  to  deter  King  James  from  his  expedi- 
tion were  not  yet  exhausted  :  his  artillerymen  at  Edinburgh 
worked  night  as  well  as  day  at  bringing  down  military  stores 
from  the  Castle.  They  were  employed  one  night  heaving  down 
the  cannon  called  the  Seven  Sisters,  which  the  King  had  had 
lately  cast  by  his  master-gunner,  Borthwick,  when,  about  mid- 
night, a  strange  scene  took  place  at  the  Mercat  Cross.  A 
summons  was  shouted  forth,  called  by  the  proclaimer  "  the  sum- 
mons of  Platcock,"  ^  which,  it  was  implied,  was  the  name  of 
some  fiend,  "  requiring  certain  earls,  lords,  barons,  and  gentlemen, 
and  sundry  burgesses,  designating  each  individual  by  name,  to 
appear  before  his  master  in  forty  days,  wheresoever  he  might  be." 
But  it  does  not  appear  that  the  person  who  played  this  audacious 
prank  dared  mention  the  King.^ 

The  ghostly  summons  was  evidently  a  parody  on  the  recent  re- 
quisition of  King  James  to  his  feudal  militia,  which  he  had  called 
out  to  do  him  their  bounden  service  against  his  adversary  of 
England  for  their  usual  forty  days,  bringing  their  arms  and 
provision.  Not  only  the  warlike  yeomanry,  but  those  burgesses 
of  Edinburgh  who  owed  military  service,  were  called  upon  to  do 
their  duty  by  the  King.  One  of  them,  Mr.  Uichard  Lawson, 
who  either  had  been,  or  was  afterward.  Provost  of  Edinburgh,* 
being  very  ill  at  ease,  probably  not  remarkably  relishing  his 
liege  lord's  call  to  the  battle-field,  had  stepped  out  for  air  on  the 
balcony  of  his  house,  when  the  fiend  at  the  Mercat  Cross,  just 
opposite,  was  vociferating  the  list  of  those  who  were  to  fall. 
Richard  Lawson,  to  his  horror,  heard  his  own  name  as  a 
summoned  one  ;    "  whereupon,  hearing  the  voice,  he  marveled 

1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 

2  Supposed  by  Sir  Walter  Scott  to  mean  Pluto. 

3  Sir  Walter  Scott  asserts  it  in  Marmion,  but  in  poetic  license. 

*  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie  mentions  him  by  name  in  his  narrative  of  this 
curious  legend.  Some  pages  afterward,  he  calls  him  Provost  of  Edin- 
burgh. 


80  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

what  it  should  be  ;  so  he  cried  out  to  his  servant  to  bring  him  his 
purse,  and  took  out  of  it  one  crown,  which  he  cast  over  his  bal- 
cony, saying — '  I  for  my  part  appeal  from  your  summons  and 
judgment,  and  betake  me  to  the  mercy  of  God.'  " 

"  Yerily,"  continues  our  author,'  "he  who  caused  me  chronicle 
this  was  ane  sufficient  landed  gentleman,  who  was  in  the  town 
of  Edinburgh  at  the  time  ;  and  he  swore,  after  the  field,  there 
was  not  one  man  whose  name  was  called  on  in  Platcock  or 
Pluto's  summons  that  came  home  alive,  excepting  only  K-ichard 
Lawson,  who  appealed  against  it."  But  it  is  most  probable  that 
Richard  Lawson  was  the  very  person  who  contrived  the  inci- 
dent :  as  he  was  one  of  the  civic  authorities,  he  had  particular 
opportunities  of  arranging  aught  that  was  done  or  acted  at  the 
Market  Cross  ■  he  was  the  only  witness  of  the  matter ;  and  he 
was  evidently  of  the  peace  or  Q,ueen's  party. 

James  IV.  was  peculiarly  liable  to  superstitious  impressions,  it 
is  true,  but  only  when  his  conscience  was  offended  or  sore  on  any 
subject.  He  treated  the  farce  played  at  the  Mercat  Cross  with 
the  contempt  it  deserved,  when  it  was  duly  related  to  him  in  the 
miorning.  "  Nor,"  continues  our  chronicler,^  "  would  he  give 
credence  to  sign  or  token  that  made  against  his  purpose,  but 
refused  all  advice  which  was  for  the  weal  of  his  crown  and 
country.  Neither  would  he  listen  to  the  counsel  of  his  wise  and 
prudent  wife,  Margaret,  Q.ueen  of  Scotland,  for  no  prayer  or 
supplication  she  could  make  him,  showing  '  That  he  had  but  one 
son,  which  was  o'er  weak  a  warrant  to  the  realm  of  Scotland  ; 
that  it  was  therefore  o'er  soon  for  him  to  pass  to  battle,  leaving  so 
few  successors  behind  him.  Therefore  she  desired  him  to  stay 
till  God  should  send  him  more  successors,  for  she  could  assure 
him  that  if  he  entered  England  at  that  time  he  would  get 
battle.'  Yet  this  wise  and  loving  counsel  was  not  taken  in  good 
part  by  him,  because  she  was  sister  to  the  King  of  England. 
Albeit,  this  noble  woman,  laboring  as  mickle  (much)  as  she 
might  for  the  weal  of  her  husband,  and  as  well  as  for  the  love 
she  bore  her  brother  the  King  of  England,  she  desired  that  no 
discord  should  occur  between  the  two  realms  in  her  time.  But 
nothing  could  stay  the  King  from  going  to  the  Boroughmoor 
(near  Edinburgh),  where  all  his  earls,  lords,  barons,  and  burgesses 
were  assembled,  and  all  manner  of  their  men  between  sixty  and 
1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Dalyell's  Edition,  p.  267,  vol.  i.  2  ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  81 

sixteen,  spiritual  and  temporal,  burgh  and  land,  islesrnen  and 
others,  which  amount  to  the  number  of  a  hundred  thousand,  not 
reckoning  carriage-men  and  artillery-men,  who  had  the  charge  of 
fifty  shot  of  cannons."  ^ 

He  was  not  at  this  time  on  very  good  terms  with  the  Glueen.'' 
As  the  supernatural  plots  which  beset  him  all  the  time  he  Avas 
preparing  for  the  field  began  with  the  nightly  disquietude  he 
had  experienced  on  account  of  her  prophetic  dreams,  he  probably 
guessed  that  she  was  the  instigator  of  the  celestial  messenger  at 
Linlithgow,  and  of  the  more  clumsy  and  audacious  farce  per- 
formed opposite  to  citizen  Lawson's  balcony  at  the  Mercat  Cross, 
Edinburgh — the  scene,  in  truth,  of  many  an  odd  political  freak 
before  and  since.  Margaret  had,  moreover,  excited  her  husband's 
displeasure  by  connecting  herself  with  the  Douglas  party,  ever 
inimical  to  the  Scottish  crown. 

The  old  Earl  of  Angus,  surnamed  Bell-the-Cat,  had  incensed 
James  by  joining  in  the  remonstrances  his  dueen  made  against 
his  war  with  England.^  Thus  Q,ueen  Margaret's  name — and 
the  fact  ought  to  be  noted — was  identified  with  the  Douglas 
faction  even  before  the  death  of  her  first  husband.  It  is  true  the 
infidelities  of  the  King  made  Angus  and  the  Glueen  make  com- 
mon cause  together.  The  old  earl  was  jealous  of  his  gay  countess, 
Jane  Kennedy,  who  was  likewise  a  cause  of  sore  displeasure  to 
Margaret. 

Nevertheless,  James  IV.  made  up  all  enmities  with  his  Glueen 
the  evening  before  he  marched  for  the  Border,  when,  according 
to  her  own  words,  he  confided  to  her  the  place  of  his  treasure  ; 
"in  case,"  as  he  said,  "that  aught  happened  other  than  good  to 
him."  Likewise,  he  wrote  an  order,  and  gave  her  to  receive  in 
trust  for  his  infant  son  the  last  subsidy  Louis  XII.  had  paid  to 
him,  being  eighteen  thousand  golden  sols,  or  crowns  of  the  sun.* 
Besides  this  mass  of  treasure,  he  then  gave  his  Q.ueen  many 
other  valuables,  as  she  herself  acknowledges  in  one  of  her  sub- 
sequent letters.^  This  trust,  which  has  never  before  taken  its 
place  in  history,  had  a  remarkable  effect  on  her  future  life. 

The  King  likewise  made  his  testament,  and  solemnly  delivered 
that  and  his  young  son  to  the  keeping  of  William  Elphinstone, 

1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Dalyell's  Edition,  p.  261,  vol.  i. 

«  Hist,  of  House  of  Douglas,  by  Hume  of  Godscroft,  p.  233.  3  ibid. 

*  Cott.  MS.    Calig.  B.  iL  f.  211.  '  Ibid 

D* 


82  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

Bishop  of  Aberdeen,  an  ecclesiastic  greatly  venerated  in  Scot- 
land/ In  case  of  his  own  death,  James  constituted  Margaret 
his  Q,ueen  "tutrix"  to  his  heir,  but  only  as  long  as  she  remained 
a  widow. 

Having  thus  given  all  due  confidence  to  Margaret  as  Gtueen 
and  mother  of  his  son,  James  IV.  marched  southward  with  his 
unwieldy  feudal  militia.  He  made  no  scruple  of  very  soon 
wounding  the  feelings  of  Margaret  as  a  wife,  although  he  had 
paid  every  regard  to  her  as  his  Glueen.  His  sudden  passion  for 
the  Lady  Heron  of  Ford  speedily  became  matter  of  public  scan- 
dal. This  lady  was  taken  when  James  IV.  stormed  Henry 
VIII. 's  frontier  castle  of  Ford.  The  castellan,  her  husband,  had 
been  for  some  time  prisoner  of  war  at  Edinburgh.  The  influ- 
ence of  the  King's  beautiful  captive  was  noticed  by  all  his  no- 
bles ;  and  the  young  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews  (the  illegiti- 
rhate  son  whom  James  had  forced  into  the  primacy  of  the  Scot- 
tish church)  was  supposed  to  have  been  equally  charmed  with 
her  lovely  young  daughter. 

Twenty  days  had  elapsed  since  James  IV.  had  marched  for 
the  Border,  when  a  sudden  pause  occurred  in  the  brilliant  suc- 
cesses with  which  he  had  opened  the  campaign.  The  enchant- 
ress who  had  paralyzed  his  warlike  ardor,  was  considered  in  the 
Scottish  camp  as  a  spy  of  the  English  general.''' 

The  Earl  of  Surrey,  the  same  nobleman  who  had  escorted 
Glueen  Margaret  to  Edinburgh,  now  commanded  the  English 
army  against  James  IV.,  to  whose  former  friendship  and  intimacy 
with  him  on  that  occasion  may  be  attributed  many  of  the  impol- 
itic but  knightly  courtesies  he  now  showed  him.  On  the  con- 
trary, Surrey,  as  the  general  of  an  implacable  monarch,  and  the 
defender  of  an  invaded  country,  naturally  took  every  advantage 
that  presented  itself,  and  more,  perhaps,  than  an  honorable  man 
ought  to  have  done  in  the  case  of  Lady  Heron's  noxious  influence 
over  her  captor. 

The  chiefs  of  the  King's  feudal  muster  openly  murmured  against 
their  royal  master  for  his  neglect  of  his  military  duties ;  they, 
however,  took  the  opportunity,  headed  by  the  Glueen's  friend, 
Angus,  of  urging  him  to  retreat  back  into  Scotland  with  the 
credit  of  the  mischief  he  had  already  done  to  the  English  enemy, 
which  more  than  redeemed  the  romantic  pledge  he  had  given  to 

1  Perfect  Occurrents,  p.  2.     Bannatyne.  2  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  83 

the  Gtueen  of  France.  James,  however,  was  intoxicated  with 
his  first  successes,  or  else  loth  to  restore  the  Lady  Heron  to  her 
rightful  owner.  He  declared  "  he  would  fight  the  English  if 
they  were  a  hundred  thousand  more  in  numbers  ;  and  as  for  old 
Bell'the-Cat,  he  might  go  back  if  he  were  afraid.  For  himself, 
when  he  had  fought  the  English  he  would  retire,  and  not  till 
then."^ 

Surrey  had  dispatched  a  herald  to  King  James  requesting 
"  that  he  would  appoint  a  day  for  battle,"  a  request  with  which 
the  Scottish  King,  in  the  spirit  of  knight-errantry  (disdaining  all 
thoughts  of  advantage  to  be  gained  by  military  strategy),  very 
naively  complied,  following  the  laws  of  the  tournament  rather 
than  the  rules  of  warlike  science. 

The  battle  of  Flodden  was  lost  before  it  was  begun,  by  the 
unseasonable  courtesy  of  King  James,  who  prevented  his  able 
gunner,  Borthwick,  from  demolishing  the  English  army,  as  it  de- 
filed within  range  of  his  "  seven  sister  cannon,  Thraw-mouthed 
Meg,"  and  other  instruments  of  destruction.  Surrey  must  have 
calculated  to  a  nicety  on  the  punctilios  of  the  crowned  chevalier, 
before  he  put  his  army  in  such  remarkable  jeopardy.  Indeed, 
without  some  previous  knowledge  of  the  personal  intimacy  be- 
tween James  and  the  astute  English  veteran  on  the  occasion  of 
Margaret's  marriage,  many  passages  are  unaccountable  in  the 
conduct  of  the  latter  on  the  memorable  morning  of  September 
9th,  1513.  But  he  knew  his  man;  he  had  probably  received 
some  chivalric  pledge  from  James  during  their  former  intimacy, 
of  which  he  now  took  advantage,  with  cunning  reliance  on  the 
inviolability  of  his  knightly  word.  King  James  followed  up  his 
first  imprudence  by  leaving  his  impregnable  situation  on  Flodden 
heights,  and  descending  into  the  lower  ground,  that  he  might 
engage  Lord  Surrey  in  a  fair  field. 

The  disastrous  result  is  universally  known.  No  one  can  im- 
prove on  the  battle-scene  in  Marmion,  which  adds  the  faithful- 
ness of  history  to  its  peculiar  charm  of  true  poetry.  The  recital 
of  battles  from  a  woman's  pen  is  almost  as  impertinent  and  out 
of  place  as  disquisitions  on  theology  ;  both  have  been  sedulously 
avoided  in  these  regal  biographies.^ 

1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  Hume  of  Godscroft's  History  of  the  Douglases, 
p.  233. 

2  The  beautiful  national  lyric,  Edinburgh  after  the  Battle  of  Flodden,  by 


84  M  A  R  G  A  R  E  T     T  U  D  O  R. 

James  IV.  must  therefore  be  left  to  his  doubtful  fate,  while 
the  narrative  returns  to  his  Q.ueen,  The  following  stanzas  were 
written  by  a  cotemporary  English  poet.*  The  lines  he  has  sup- 
posed to  be  spoken  by  the  brave  and  unfortunate  King  of  Scot- 
land. 

"  Farewell,  my  Queen,  sweet  Lady  Margaret ! 
Farewell,  my  Prince  !  with  whom  I  used  to  play : 
I  wot  not  where  we  shall  together  meet. 
Farewell,  my  Lords  and  Commons  !  eke  for  aye : 
Adieu !  ye  shall  no  ransom  for  me  pay. 
Yet  I  beseech  you,  of  your  charity, 
To  the  high  Lord  merciful  that  ye  pray, 
Miserere  mei  Deus  et  salva  me." 

Profesqor  Aytoun,  in  his  popular  volume.  Lays  of  the  Scottish  Cavaliers' 
afifords  a  mournfully  graphic  picture  of  the  grief  that  pervaded  all  hearts  in 
the  metropolis  of  Scotland  on  the  arrival  of  the  fatal  news, 
i  John  Higgins.     "  Mirror  for  Magistrates,"  vol.  ii.  p.  411. 


CHAPTER    III. 


SUMMARY. 

Queen  Margaret  at  Linlithgow  Palace — Withdraws  to  Perth — Writes  to  her  brother, 
Henry  VIII.— The  mourning  coronation  of  her  son,  James  V.— Margaret  declared  Queen 
Regent  of  Scotland — Retains  the  State  treasure — John,  Duke  of  Albany,  invited  to  assist 
her  Regency — Birth  of  her  posthumous  son — Enamored  of  the  Earl  of  Angus — Ad- 
vances his  uncle,  Gavin  Douglas — Her  poetical  portrait  in  his  Palace  of  Honor — 
Queen  marries  Angus  privately — Popular  rage  at  her  second  marriage — Queen  gives 
Gavin  Douglas  her  father's  Prayer-book  (fac-aimilc  of  her  autograph,  therein) — She  19 
deprived  of  sovereign  power — Message  brought  her  from  Council  by  the  Lord-Lion — 
Lord  Drummond  strikes  him  in  her  presence — Margaret  causes  her  husband  to  assault 
the  Lord  Chancellor — Her  deposition — Her  letters  to  Henry  VIII. — Her  reception  of  the 
Regent  Albany — Her  intercession  for  Lord  Drummond — Surrender  of  her  sons  required — 
Shuts  them  up  in  Edinburgh  Castle — Arranges  their  appearance  in  the  gateway — Her 
husband's  retreat — Margaret  retires  to  Stirling — Regent  besieges  her — She  surrenders 
her  sons — Goes  to  Linlithgow — Plans  to  steal  her  children — Takes  her  chamber  for  her 
accouchement — Escapes  with  her  husband  to  Tantallan — Flies  to  the  Border — Takes 
refuge  at  Coldstream  Priory — Her  illness  there — Her  lady-visitor  maltreated — Margaret's 
complaints  thereof— Invited  into  England — Sets  out  for  Morpeth — Taken  iU  on  the  road — 
Hurried  into  Harbottle— In  danger  of  death— Birth  of  her  daughter,  Margaret  Doug- 
las— Letter  to  Albany — Languishing  state — Removes  to  Morpeth — Death  of  her  infant 
son — Deserted  by  her  husband — Invited  by  Henry  VIII.  to  Com-t — Katharine  of  Arra- 
gon's  presents  to  her— Progress  to  London— Warm  welcome  at  Greenwich — Tourna- 
ment in  her  honor — Her  treachery  to  Scotland — Letters  to  Wolsey — Inventory  of  her 
valuables,  &c.  &c. 

Q,UEEN  Margaret  had  been  left  at  her  Palace  of  Linlithgow  by 
her  husband  when  he  marched  southward  to  his  disastrous 
campaign.  She  had  wished  exceedingly  to  accompany  him  to 
the  army,  in  hopes,  as  she  said,  of  mediating  for  him  with  Eng- 
land. Therefore  she  remained  in  the  north,  much  against  her 
inclination,  restless  and  unhappy,  her  feelings  as  a  wife  being 
much  outraged  by  the  scandals  afloat  concerning  the  partiality  of 
James  IV.  to  Lady  Heron  of  Ford.V 

There  are  traditions  still  current  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
beautiful  palatial  ruin  of  Linlithgow  relative  to  her  parting  with 
James  IV. 

Near  the  King's  bed-chamber,  and  a  beautiful  little  apartment 
overlooking  the  lake,  supposed  to  be  his  dressing-room,  is  a  tum- 
^  Mackenzie's  Lives  of  Eminent  Scots,  vol.  ii. 


86  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

pike  stair,  at  the  corner  of  the  east  side  of  the  quadrangle  erected 
by  James  IV.  This  leads  to  a  lofty  turret  or  mirador,  called  by 
popular  tradition  "  (dueen  Margaret's  Bower."  It  is  surrounded 
by  a  stone  bench  or  divan,  and  had  once  a  small  stone  table  in 
the  center.  Here  the  Glueen  spent  in  tears  the  livelong  summer's 
day  on  which  her  husband  left  her  to  march  against  England. 
Here,  too,  she  is  said  to  have  passed  "  the  weary  night  of  Flodden 
fight,"  expecting  news  of  the  engagem.ent,  which  came  at  last, 
but  too  soon.^ 

The  fatal  field  of  Flodden  not  only  m.ade  Q,ueen  Margaret  a 
widow,  but  rendered  Scotland  desolate  and  almost  desperate. 
All  the  hope  that  remained  to  the  people  of  averting  the  fury  of 
Henry  VIII.,  and  the  cruelty  of  his  successful  general,  centered 
solely  in  the  Q,ueen — -being  founded  on  the  near  relationship  of 
herself  and  their  infant  King  to  the  southern  sovereign. 

The  grief  of  Margaret  as  a  widow,  to  whatsoever  height  it 
rose,  has  never  been  dwelt  upon  by  any  cotempdrary,  nor  even 
by  her  own  ever-active  pen.  No  unfaithful  husband,  however 
accomplished  he  may  be,  and  admired  by  the  world  in  general, 
can  reasonably  expect  a  very  profuse  expenditure  of  tears  from 
his  widow.  As  dueen  Regent,  Margaret  was  much  better  em- 
ployed than  in  passionate  lamentations,  for  she  exerted  herself 
with  prompt  energy  in  securing  the  safety  of  the  people  committed 
to  her  care  by  her  husband,  and  in  hastening  the  coronation  of 
her  son. 

For  this  purpose  she  retreated  to  Perth,  whither  there  is  every 
reason  to  suppose  that  the  venerable  Bishop  Elphinstone  had 
already  conveyed  the  infant  James  V.  When  the  Glueen  arrived 
there,  she  immediately  wrote  to  her  brother  deprecating  his 
further  hostilities,  and  entreating  him  not  to  oppress  or  harm 
"her  little  King,"  his  nephew,  "who  was,"  she  said,  "very 
small  and  tender,  being  only  one  year  and  five  months  old."  * 
To  this  she  added  the  affecting  fact,  that  she  should  become  the 
mother  of  a  posthumous  babe  in  a  few  months.  "  Her  letter," 
says  a  most  intelligent  historian,  "  seems  never  to  have  been 
communicated  by  Henry  VIII.  to  his  Council ;"  but  he  answered 
it  saying,  "  If  the  Scots  wanted  peace  they  should  have  it ;  if 

1  Chambers'  Picture  of  Scotland,  vol.  ii.  p,  55. 

2  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  558.  Drummond  of  Hawthornden,  Hist,  of 
Scotland. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  87 

war,  they  should  have  it ;  as  for  her  husband,  he  had  fallen  by 
his  own  indiscreet  rashness  and  foolish  kindness  to  France,  but  he 
regretted  his  death  as  a  relative."  ^ 

The  Q,ueen  convened  such  of  the  nobility  as  survived  the  red 
field  of  Flodden  to  meet  the  clergy  at  Perth  immediately.  So 
prompt  were  all  their  proceedings,  that  the  young  King  was 
crowned  at  Scone,^  near  that  city,  within  twenty  days  of  his 
father's  death.  It  was  called  the  Mourning  Coronation  ;  for  the 
ancient  crown  of  Scotland  being  held  over  on  the  baby-brow  of 
the  royal  infant,  most  of  the  witnesses  and  assistants  of  the  cere- 
mony burst  into  an  "  infectious  passion"  of  sobs  and  tears.  They 
wept  not  only  their  own  recent  losses  on  the  battle-field,  but  their 
late  monarch,  "  who  was,"  as  Buchanan  says,  albeit  no  commen- 
der  of  kings,  "  dear  to  all  men  while  living,  and  mightily  lament- 
ed by  his  people  at  his  death." 

When  the  first  agony  of  grief  was  abated  at  the  loss  of  the 
King  and  the  terrible  slaughter  of  the  best  of  the  nobility  and 
gentry  who  fought  in  the  serried  phalanx  of  spears  about  hia 
person,  the  discovery  was  made  by  the  Scottish  people  that  no 
other  injury  was  like  to  accrue  from  Flodden  fight.  It  was,  to 
all  intents  and  purposes,  one  of  those  bad  expenditures  of  human 
life  called  a  drawn  battle.  Had  it  taken  place  on  Scottish 
ground,  it  would  have  been  reckoned  another  Bannockburn  :  the 
English  must  have  retreated  (for  they  did  so  on  their  own 
ground),  and  the  Scots  would  have  retained  possession  of  the  field. 
As  it  was,  the  English  had  the  moral  advantages  of  being  an 
invaded  people  ;  and,  as  such,  their  success  in  making  a  great 
slaughter  of  those  v/ho    were   arrayed  in    battle   on  their   soil, 

I  Scotland,  Enclyclopgedia  Britannicca,  vol.  xvii.  Drummond  of  Haw- 
thornden. 

^  Tytler,  vol.  v.  p.  72.  From  Lord  Dacre's  Dispatch,  Calig.  iii.  B.  British 
Museum.  James  V.  was  not  eighteen  months  old  at  the  time  of  his  father's 
death  ;  for,  after  much  inquiry,  Pinkerton  fixes  the  day  of  his  birth  as  April 
10,  1512.  We  have  fixed  April  11,  from  Bishop  Lesley,  as  Mary  Queen  of 
Scots  must  have  known  her  own  father's  birth-day ;  and  she  was  his  inform- 
ant. No  two  historians  quote  the  day  of  his  birth  alike;  in  several  in- 
stances even  the  year  is  matter  of  dispute.  His  father's  birth-day  is  as 
difficult  to  ascertain.  It  is  probable  these  dates  were  left  matters  of 
mystery,  in  order  to  baffle  the  impertinent  dealers  in  astrology,  by  setting 
at  favdt  the  calculators  of  nativities,  who  were  the  pests  of  Europe  at  that 
era.  Pinkerton  affirms,  from  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  that  the  coronation  took 
place  at  Perth — probably  at  Scone,  near  Perth. 


88  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

redounded  more  to  their  true  glory  than  is  the  case  in  most  great 
victories.  But  they  did  not  purchase  it  easily.  Stark  and  stiff 
as  James  IV.  lay  under  heaps  of  slain,  he  kept  possession  of  that 
well-stricken  field.  The  dispatch  of  Lord  Dacre  clearly  proves 
that  when  the  English  left  the  field  at  nightfall,  they  were 
ignorant  to  whom  the  victory  belonged.  Then  the  Homes  and 
other  Border  chieftains  plundered  the  dead  at  their  leisure ;  their 
countrymen  strongly  suspected  that  they  slew  their  King,  and 
turned  the  scale  of  victory  against  their  countrymen.  There  is 
the  more  probability  in  this  supposition  when  it  is  remembered 
how  inflexibly  James  IV.  had  maintained  justice  on  his  Borders, — 
therefore  he  had  honestly  won  the  enmity  of  those  rapacious 
septs. 

Lord  Dacre  made  an  excursion  of  observation,  with  a  party  of 
cavalry,  in  the  morning  after  the  battle  of  Flodden,  to  ascertain 
who  possessed  the  field  ;  he  saw  the  King  of  Scotland's  formida- 
ble train  of  brass  cannon  dominant  over  the  scene,  but  mute  and 
motionless  ;  the  artillerymen  gone  ;  the  Scottish  cannon  and  the 
silent  dead  were  solely  in  possession  of  the  battle-ground.  The 
thickest  heaps  cumbered  it  on  the  spot  where  the  royal  James 
and  his  phalanx  had  fought ;  the  breathless  warriors  lay  just  as 
death  had  left  them,  for  the  marauding  Borderers  had  not  dared 
to  pursue  their  occupation  of  stripping  and  plundering  in  the  full 
light  of  day.  James  IV.,  it  was  reported,  had  first  been  wounded 
by  an  English  arrow,  and  then  killed  by  a  cannon-ball,  which 
had  so  completely  obliterated  his  features  that  no  certainty  existed 
as  to  the  identity  of  his  body.^  The  corpse  that  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  English,  it  is  asserted,  was  that  of  Andrew  Lord 
Elphinstone,  a  dear  personal  friend  of  the  King,  of  his  age  and 
stature,  and  otherwise  closely  resembling  him  in  person.  Lord 
Elphinstone  had  married  Elizabeth  Barley,  one  of  Glueen  Marga- 
ret's English  maids  of  honor.'* 

Reports  prevailed  that  the  King  had  been  seen  alive  at  Kelso 
the  evening  following,  and  that  he  was  still  in  existence,  perform- 
ing an  expiatory  pilgrimage  to  Jerusalem.*  It  will  be  shown 
subsequently  how  singular  was  the  use  Gtueen  Margaret  made 
some  years  afterward  of  this  report. 

1  Lord  Caere's  Letter.     Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  iii. 

^  Drummond  of  Hawthornden,  p.  9*7.    Buchanan,  vol.  ii.  p.  125. 

»  Ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  89 

The  chief  fact  which  staggered  the  EngUsh  in  regard  to  the 
identity  of  the  corpse  they  supposed  to  be  that  of  the  warUke 
King  of  Scotland,  was  the  absence  of  the  penance-chain  he  wore 
about  his  waist ;  ^  but  that  is,  after  all,  no  criterion,  since  he 
might  have  considered  it  his  duty  to  take  it  off  for  that  day, 
at  least  when  "  he  meant  to  strike  personally  good  blows  in  the 
field." 

The  neglect  which  the  poor  corpse  experienced,  whether  it  was 
that  of  the  King  of  Scots  or  Lord  Elphinstone,  must  ever  disgrace 
the  memory  of  Henry  VIII.  It  was  embalmed  by  Surrey's  orders, 
and  sent  with  James's  armor  to  Richmond  or  Shene  Palace.^  Here 
it  was  kept  unburied,  to  be  shown  to  Henry  YIIL  when  he  re- 
turned from  winning  "  his  French  pension."  Then  the  body  re- 
mained unburied,  because  James  had  died  excommunicated  by 
Pope  Julius  II.,  who  had  forbidden  him  to  invade  England.  At 
last,  when  half  a  century  had  elapsed,  it  was  buried  privately  by 
the  King's  plumber  in  the  church  of  St.  Michael,  Wood  Street, 
in  the  city  of  London.^ 

At  the  end  of  the  same  century,  it  was  generally  settled  that 
James  IV.  was  neither  buried  in  the  church  at  Wood  Street,  nor 
in  the  far  Holy  Land,  but  had  been  abducted  by  the  Elfin-queen, 
and  carried  off  between  Ufe  and  death  to  fairyland  ;  for  Andrew 
Man,  a  noted  witch-finder,  afterward  burned  as  a  witch,  deposed 
in  his  confession  previous  to  his  execution  at  Aberdeen,  that  he 
had  seen  him  there,  1597.* 

It  is  noticed  rather  emphatically  in  Scottish  chronicle,  that  the 
dueen  of  France,  Anne  of  Bretagne,  survived  the  news  of  the 
disastrous  battle  cf  Flodden  but  a  few  hours  ;  ^  in  fact,  she  had 
been  dying  of  decline  for  several  months.  Glueen  Margaret,  who 
had  indulged  in  transports  of  jealousy  on  account  of  Q,ueen  Anne's 

^  Drummond  of  Hawthornden,  p.  228. 

2  Lord  Stafford,  one  of  the  victims  murdered  by  Titus  Oates'  perjuries  in  the 
Popish  Plot,  concocted  by  the  republicans  in  the  seventeenth  century,  left  to 
his  niece,  the  night  before  his  execution,  a  plain  iron  sword,  and  a  large  tur- 
quoise-ring, part  of  tlie  personal  spoils  of  James  IV.,  long  retained  in  the 
Howard  family.  The  ring  is  said  to  be  that  of  the  Queen  of  France,  which 
caused  Queen  Margaret's  jealousy ;  but  if  it  be  indeed  Anne  of  Bretagne's 
ring,  that  gem  is  strangely  overvalued  in  chronicle  at  nineteen  thousand 
crowns.     These  relics  are  now  in  the  Herald's  College. 

^  Stowe's  Annals.  •*  Spalding  Papers. 

*  Drummond  of  Hawthornden,  p.  229. 


90  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

correspondence  with  James  IV.,  had  a  near  chance  of  becoming 
her  successor,  as  Louis  XII.  greatly  desired  to  marry  her. 

The  Parhament  of  vScotland  was  convened  by  Q,ueen  Margaret 
to  meet  at  Stirhng  Castle,  December  21,  1513.  Here  the  will 
of  James  IV.  was  read  :  although  his  request  that  Margaret  would 
take  upon  her  the  regency  and  personal  care  of  the  infant  King 
was  against  the  ancient  customs  of  Scotland,  which  always,  placed 
the  executive  power  in  the  hands  of  the  next  male  heir ;  yet,  the 
hearts  of  all  present  being  full  of  tenderness  to  the  memory  of 
their  loved  and  lost  monarch,  no  one  could  bear  to  gainsay  his 
last  wishes.^  Q,ueen  Margaret  was  therefore  unanimously  recog- 
nized as  their  Regent,  and  the  young  King  was  solemnly  given 
into  her  care.  The  Lord  Chancellor,  James  Beton,  Archbishop 
of  Glasgow,  the  Earls  of  Arran,  Huntley,  and  Angus  were  deputed 
to  assist  her.  Stirling  Castle,  the  great  palatial  fortress  of  Scot- 
land, was  appointed  as  the  residence  of  the  infant  monarch,  and 
of  the  Prince  or  Princess  the  Q,ueen  was  expected  to  produce. 
Q,ueen  Margaret  was  to  have  possession  of  Stirling  Castle,  until 
her  son  James  V.  came  of  age.  But  all  her  power  and  grandeur 
as  reigning  sovereign  of  Scotland  were  to  cease  if  she  made  a 
second  marriage  :  on  this  head  the  testament  of  James  IV.  was 
stringent. 

Q,ueen  Margaret,  when  she  began  to  reign  in  Scotland,  had 
just  completed  her  twenty-fourth  year.  Thus  was  the  whole 
island  under  the  sway  of  the  scepters  of  a  brother  and  sister ; 
Henry  VIII.  ruling  the  south,  and  dueen  Margaret  the  north,  of 
Great  Britain. 

Well  would  it  have  been  for  Margaret  Tudor  if  she  had  acted 
according  to  the  homely  axiom,  that  honesty  is  the  best  policy. 
On  the  contrary,  her  first  action  at  this  juncture  was  a  dishonest 
one.  She  concealed  the  treasure  her  late  husband  had  confided 
to  her  for  the  use  of  his  successor.  In  that  era,  when  all  govern- 
ments were  personal,  such  trust  was  literally  meant  for  the  pur- 
pose of  carrying  on  the  business  of  the  state  in  the  name  of  the 
infant  King,  which  it  was  scarcely  possible  to  do  without  proper 
supplies  of  specie.  Besides,  it  is  most  evident  that  James  IV., 
when  he  placed  in  the  hands  of  his  dueen  that  remarkable  proof 
of  his  confidence,  did  not  intend  it  to  be  made  the  means  of  her 

*  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  il  p.  558. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  91 

gratifying  her  particular  partialities,  as  he  had  forhidden  her  to 
sway  the  scepter  if  she  gave  herself  to  another  husband. 

At  that  very  convention  of  parliament,  the  officers  of  the  crown, 
on  looking  into  the  late  King's  personal  afiairs,  found  an  empty 
treasury.  They  manifested  great  surprise  at  his  want  of  wisdom 
in  attacking  England  pertinaciously,  when  he  must,  even  if  vic- 
torious, have  fallen  back  utterly  exhausted,  from  lack  of  means 
for  continuing  the  contest.  All  historians  have  repeated  this 
censure.^  The  truth  has  rested  concealed  in  Q,ueen  Margaret's 
letters  until  the  present  day.  The  fact  that  she  retained  her 
husband's  exchequer  for  her  own  use,  throws  much  light  on  the 
perpetual  disputes  which  distracted  her  regency. 

As  the  treasurer  had  paid  to  her,  by  the  King's  written  order, 
the  18,000  golden  sols  with  which  Louis  XII.  had  subsidized 
Scotland,  that  sum  must  have  been  positively  traced  into  her 
possession.  The  Q,ueen  met  the  proposal  of  restitution  by  a  plea 
that  it  was  owing  to  her  for  arrears  of  dower.  The  venerable  Dr. 
Elphinstone,  Bishop  of  Aberdeen,'*  addressed  the  convened  Par- 
liament in  the  hall  of  Stirling  Castle  on  that  subject.  He  be- 
wailed the  utterly  exhausted  state  of  the  late  King's  exchequer. 
"  Meantime,  great  claims,"  he  said,  "were  made  thereon  by  the 
dueen  for  her  jointure,  and  for  the  education  of  the  young  King ; 
on  which  account  he  agreed  with  those  who  thought  it  desirable 
that  the  next  heir,  John  Duke  of  Albany,  ^  then  a  naturalized 
subject  of  France,  should  be  forthwith  invited  to  Scotland,  in  order 
to  assist  the  Q,ueen  Regent  in  the  government ;"  which,  being 
destitute  of  funds,  required  all  the  ner^^e  of  a  hardy  soldier  to  WTest 
the  needful  supplies  from  the  exhausted  people.  Had  Margaret 
restored  the  treasure  she  detained  to  its  proper  destination,  it  is 
clear  she  would  have  been  left  without  a  rival  in  empire  :  thus 
did  her  avarice  defeat  her  ambition,  which,  like  that  of  every 
member  of  the  Tudor  race,  was  inordinate  and  dominant. 

Henry  VIII.,  in  great  alarm  lest  the  French  interest  should  be 
again  prevalent  in  Scotland,  wrote  to  his  sister,  urging  her  to  use 
every  means  of  preventing  Albany's  arrival.  She  needed  no  im- 
portunity to  do  all  in  her  power  for  preventing  his  approach. 
Nevertheless,  the  delicacy  of  her  health,  and  her  precarious  situa- 
tion, obliged  her  to  desist  from  much  political  agitation  during 

^  Buchanan,  vol.  ii.  Book  xiii.  p.  127. 

=  Ibid.  vol.  L  Book  xiii.  p.  130.  ^  Ibid. 


92  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

the  winter  of  1513-14.  In  the  spring,  she  added  a  fine  boy  to 
the  royal  family  of  ScotLind,  who  was  born  at  Stirling  Castle, 
April  30,  1514.  He  was  baptized  Alexander  by  the  Bishop  of 
Caithness,  and  entitled  Duke  of  Ross.  The  people  of  Scotland 
fondly  considered  him  the  most  beautiful  infant  that  ever  saw  the 
light :  still  mourning  for  the  father,  they  surveyed  his  posthumous 
babe  with  affectionate  interest. 

Some  propositions  were  made  by  Louis  XII.  for  the  hand  of 
Margaret,'  just  after  the  birth  of  her  second  son.  The  idea  of 
this  alliance  alarmed  the  political  jealousy  of  Henry  VIII.  If 
the  mother  of  the  King  of  Scotland  became  Q-ueen  of  France,  the 
case  had  been  worse  than  the  Gallic-bred  Duke  of  Albany  gov- 
erning Scotland.  Lord  Dacre,  however,  whose  words  are  always 
remarkably  scornful  when  the  Q,ueen  of  Scotland  was  concerned, 
says  without  scruple,  "  If  the  French  King  incline  to  marry  her, 
he  may  have  her."^ 

Such  did  not  prove  the  policy  of  England.  The  young  Prin- 
cess, Mary  Tudor,  was  consigned  to  Louis  XII.  ;  while  Margaret, 
as  soon  as  she  recovered  her  health,  began  to  bethink  herself  of  a 
much  more  juvenile  spouse. 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  the  powerful  family  of  Douglas 
was  considered  of  the  Glueen's  party  during  the  last  years  of  her 
wedlock  with  King  James.  Old  Angus  had  retired,  full  of  indig- 
nant sorrow,  to  his  stronghold  at  Tantallan,  after  the  taunt  with 
which  his  sovereign  had  insulted  him  :  he  had,  however,  left  in 
the  Scottish  army  his  brave  son  George,  Master  of  Douglas,  at 
the  head  of  his  feudal  muster.  George  fell  in  the  battle,  with 
two  hundred  gentlemen  of  the  name  of  Douglas.^  The  old  Earl 
of  Angus  never  appeared  in  public  after  Flodden-iield.  He  died 
during  the  winter  that  followed,  leaving  his  vast  possessions  to  his 
grandson  Archibald,  eldest  son  of  George,  who  fell  at  Flodden. 

The  young  Earl  of  Angus  was  only  in  his  nineteenth  year  when 
he  took  his  place  at  the  Scottish  Council-board.  He  was  intro- 
duced there  by  his  maternal  grandfather.  Lord  Drummond  of 
Stobshall,  that  old  statesman  and  courtier,  whose  career  of  over- 
vaulting  ambition  had  been  suddenly  stopped  by  his  daughter's 
mysterious  death.  Lord  Drummond  had,  it  will  be  remembered, 
to  bewail  the  untimely  demise  at  the  same  time,  not  only  of  Mar- 

1  Cal.  iii.,  B.     British  Museum.  ^  Ibid.     Letter  of  Lord  Dacre. 

'  Hume  of  Godscroft's  Hist,  of  the  House  of  Douglas,  p.  234. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  93 

g^aret,  whom  his  King  had  married,  but  of  two  of  her  sisters,  Lady 
Fleming  and  the  young  Sybella.  His  surviving  daughter,  the 
Lady  Elizabeth,  had  married  the  heir  of  Angus,  and  was  the 
mother  of  a  large  family.  Lord  Drummond,  at  the  time  when  he 
took  the  superintendence  of  the  career  of  his  young  grandson, 
Archibald,  Earl  of  Angus,  at  the  court  of  the  Regent  Q.ueen,  was 
Lord-Justiciary  of  Scotland,  one  of  the  greatest  officers  of  the 
CrowTi.^  He  had  marked,  with  the  wily  observation  of  a  courtier 
who  had  profited  in  life  by  the  great  beauty  of  his  family,  how 
much  Q.ueen  Margaret  was  struck  by  the  lofty  stature  and  hand- 
some face  of  his  grandson  Angus,  when  that  youth  was  first  pre- 
sented to  her  at  the  Privy  Council-board.^ 

Although  the  Earl  of  Angus  was  but  a  youth,  or  adolcscens,  as 
the  historian  of  his  house  terms  him,^  he  was  already  a  widower, 
having  been  married  in  his  childhood  according  to  the  evil  custom 
of  those  tim_es.  Margaret  Hepburn,  his  wife,  had  died  with  her 
first-born  ;  and  the  young  widower,  since  her  demise,  had  lost  his 
heart  irrevocably  to  a  beautiful  daughter  of  the  noble  house  of 
Traquair.*  Lady  Jane  Stuart  was  at  least  his  equal,  and  in  all 
matters  a  fitting  mate  for  him,  until  his  fine  person  drew  on  him 
the  eyes  of  the  Regent  Q.,ueen  of  Scotland,  and  ambition  led  him 
to  aspire  to  the  domination  of  his  native  land  as  her  wedded  lord. 

Q,ueen  Margaret's  sudden  passion  for  the  young  Earl  was  en- 
couraged by  Lord  Drummond,  who  prompted  her  with  an  excuse 
for  following  her  inclination  by  representing  how  impossible  it  was 
for  the  English  party  in  Scotland  to  stand  against  the  French 
faction,  if  ever  the  Duke  of  Albany  arrived  as  governor,  without 
she  strengthened  herself  by  the  powerful  aid  of  the  mighty  Doug- 
las clan  and  their  allies,  of  which  the  Drummond  family  alone 
would  make  sufficient  preponderance  to  outweigh  all  the  objec- 
tions the  rest  of  the  nobility  could  urge  against  her  retention  of 
the  regency  after  wedding  a  second  husband,  contrary  to  the  tes- 
tament of  the  late  King. 

The  Glueen  resolved  to  quote  these  good  reasons  to  her  brother, 
if  he  had  aught  to  say  against  her  second  marriage.  Meantime, 
with  the  headlong  favoritism  of  the  Tudor  race,  she  commenced 
lavishing  every  gift  at  the  disposal  of  the  Crown  on  the  family 

1  History  of  the  Drummonds. 

2  Hume  of  Godscroft's  Hist,  of  Douglas,  pp.  238,  239. 

3  Ibid.  *  Ibid.  237. 


94  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

and  faction  of  the  Douglases.  The  day  before  her  wedlock,  she 
nominated,  of  her  own  despotic  will,  Gavin  Douglas,  the  uncle 
of  her  inamorato,  as  Bishop  of  Dunkeld.  The  ambition  of  the 
Douglases  pointed  at  the  primacy  of  Scotland  ;  and  that  very 
day,  in  a  family  conclave,  a  scheme  was  contrived  to  secure 
Gavin  Douglas  the  reversion  of  the  Archbishopric  of  St.  Andrews. 
As  all  Scotland  considered  it  was  the  proper  place  of  their  be- 
loved Bishop  Elphinstone,  Margaret  could  not  give  Gavin  Douglas 
the  primacy  in  the  lifetime  of  that  prelate  ;  but  as  she  saw  that 
the  venerable  man  was  drooping  to  the  grave,  never  having 
looked  up  since  the  battle  of  Flodden,  she  thought  his  death 
would  soon  leave  a  vacancy  for  the  promotion  of  Angus's  uncle. 
She  therefore  wrote  to  the  Pope,  in  her  capacity  of  Q.ueen  Regent 
of  Scotland,  entreating  him  to  advance  Elphinstone  to  the  see  of 
St.  Andrews.  But  the  old  Bishop  refused  the  preferment.  "  He 
was  full  of  years  and  sorrows,"  he  told  her,  "  and  ready  for  the 
grave  ;  he  could  not  take  on  himself  any  such  troublesome  ad- 
vancement." ^  Margaret  affected  to  keep  the  see  of  St.  Andrews 
open  for  him,  and  meantime  inducted  the  learned  Gavin  Douglas 
to  the  bishopric  of  Dunkeld.^ 

Glueen  Margaret  had  another  motive  for  showing  the  utmost 
complaisance  to  the  elegant  churchman  whose  niece  she  meant 
to  become.  He  had  drawn  a  brilliant  description  of  her,  both 
as  woman  and  sovereign.  Those  historical  lines  are  introduced 
in  Gavin  Douglas's  poem  of  the  Palace  of  Honor.  They  not 
only  offer  an  accurate  view  of  the  person  and  costume  of  Mar- 
garet Tudor  when  in  the  prime  of  her  life  and  the  glory  of  her 
sovereignty,  before  disease  had  marred  her  beauty,  or  absurd  des- 
potism brought  contempt  on  her  authority  as  Regent  Glueen,  but 
they  give  a  fair  specimen  of  the  state  of  literature  in  Scotland  at 
the  era  of  her  regency. 

"  Amidst  them,  borne  within  a  golden  chair, 
O'er-fret  with  pearls  and  colors  most  preclair, 
That  drawen  was  by  hackneys  all  milk-white, 
Was  set  a  queen  as  lily  sweetly  fair, 
In  purple  robe  hemmed  with  gold  ilk-where ; 
With  gemmed  clasps  closed  in  all  perfite, 
A  diadem  most  pleasantly  polite, 
Sate  on  the  tresses  of  her  golden  hair, 
And  in  her  hand  a  sceptre  of  delight. 

^  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii,  p.  558.  '  Ibid.  p.  302 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  95 

So  next  her  rode  in  granate-violet, 
Twelve  damsels,  ilka  ane  on  their  estate, 
Which  seemed  of  her  counsel  most  secrete ; 
.  And  next  them  was  a  lusty  rout,  God  wot ! 
Lords,  ladies,  and  full  mony  a  fair  prelate, 
Both  born  of  low  estate  and  high  degree, 
Forth  with  their  queen  they  all  by-passed  me, 
At  easy  pace — they  riding  forth  the  gate, 
And  I  abode  alone  within  the  tree."  ^ 

Lord  Drummond  arranged  all  matters  for  the  private  marriage 
of  his  grandson,  Angus,  with  the  Q,ueen  Regent,  by  causing  his 
brother's  son,  Walter  Drummond,  Dean  of  Dunblane,  and  parson 
of  Kinnoul,  to  attend  at  one  of  the  altars  of  Kinnoul  Church, 
August  4,  1514,  where  Margaret,  widow  of  James  IV.,  and 
Archibald,  Earl  of  Angus,  were  by  him  made  man  and  wife.^ 

The  secret  of  the  Glueen's  marriage  was  not  generally  known 
until  a  few  weeks  afterward,  when,  at  the  death  of  Elphinstone, 
Bishop  of  Aberdeen,  in  the  succeeding  October,  Glueen  Margaret, 
without  paying  the  least  regard  to  the  rights  of  election  inherent 
in  the  Church,  nominated,  by  the  despotism  of  her  own  will,  her 
husband's  uncle,  Gavin  Douglas,  as  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews, 
or  Primate  of  Scotland.  The  alarm  throughout  the  country  was 
great  at  finding  the  ambitious  house  of  Douglas  again  rising  into 
formidable  power.  The  attention  of  all  people  was  centered  on 
the  Q,ueen,  to  ascertain  her  reasons  for  entering  into  the  furious 
contention  with  the  Church  that  ensued.  Her  marriage  with 
the  nephew  of  her  nominee  to  the  vacant  see  was  soon  discovered. 
No  wonder,  when  the  matter  was  in  the  keeping  of  twelve  dam- 
sels, although  her  uncle  Gavin  has  affirmed  "  they  were  of  her 
counsel  most  secrete."  Nevertheless,  the  secret  was  quite  public 
early  in  November,  1514. 

Great  was  the  commotion,  violent  the  rage,  and  intense  the 
indignation,  of  all  ranks  and  conditions  of  the  Scottish  people. 

At  last  it  was  remembered  that  if  the  Church  had  submitted 
more  than  was  her  duty  to  the  despotism  of  the  monarchical 
authority,  by  admitting  the  two  preceding  Archbishops  of  St. 
Andrews,  Q.ueen  Margaret  had  no  right  to  the  same  complai- 
sance, since  she  had  forfeited  her  regal  station  from  the  moment 

1  Gavin  Douglas's  Palace  of  Honor. 

'  Lord  Strathallan's  MS.,  quoted  in  History  of  Drummond  FamJy. 


96  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

when  she  had  given  herself  in  second  wedlock  to  the  Earl  of 
Angus. 

It  was  probably  at  the  time  when  all  these  feuds  were  swell- 
ing to  the  height  of  civil  war,  that  the  Glueen  presented  to  Gavin 
Douglas  the  prayer-book  which  had  been  given  her  by  Henry 
VII.  at  their  last  parting  in  the  Hall  of  Colleweston,  wherein  he 
had  written  solemn  remembrances  and  benedictions. 

At  the  end  of  the  service  assigned  for  the  commemoration  of 
St.  George  ^  occur  these  words — 


ox 

O  \AJ 


On  the  first  leaf  of  the  missal  is  likewise  written,  in  an  antique 
character,  "  This  book  was  given  by  Henry  7  of  England  to  his 
daughter  Margaret,  Queen  of  Scotland  (mother  to  the  Lady 
Margaret  Douglas),  ivho  also  gave  the  same  to  the  Archbishop 
of  St.  Andrews r 

The  Glueen's  marriage  with  Angus  determined  the  Council  to 
depose  her  from  the  regency.'*  On  this  measure  all  but  the  im- 
mediate faction  of  Angus  were  agreed.  "  We  have  shown  here- 
tofore our  willingness  to  honor  the  Glueen,"  observed  Lord  Home, 

1  Harleian  MS.,  Plutus  6986,  f.  32. 

2  Life  of  Bishop  Lesley.     Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  559. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  97 

"  contrary  to  the  ancient  custom  of  this  kingdom ;  we  suffered 
and  obeyed  her  authority  the  whiles  she  herself  kept  her  right 
by  keeping  her  widowhood.  Now  she  has  quit  it  by  marrying, 
why  should  we  not  chuse  another  to  succeed  in  the  place  she  Ijas 
voluntarily  left  ?  Our  old  laws  do  not  permit  that  a  woman 
should  govern  in  the  most  peaceable  times,  far  less  now  when 
such  evils  do  threaten  as  can  scarcely  be  resisted  by  the  wisest 
and  most  sufficient  men." 

The  majority  of  the  Council  agreed  in  this  opinion,  one  of 
them  quaintly  adding,  "  that  the  point  principally  annoying  to 
them  was  the  fact,  that  the  Earl  of  Angus,  as  head  of  the  house 
of  Douglas,  was  already  great ;  the  Glueen's  marrying  him  had 
made  him  greater  still ;  but,  continuing  her  authority  as  Regent, 
now  he  was  her  husband,  would  make  him  far  too  great  for  the 
peace  and  safety  of  Scotland."  ^ 

The  Council  concluded  by  solemnly  deposing  the  Q,ueen  from 
the  sovereignty  of  Scotland  as  Regent.  Moreover,  the  Lord 
Lion,  king-at-arms,  was  formally  ordered  to  signify  to  Lord  Angus 
"  that  he  must  forthwith  appear  before  the  Lords  of  the  Council 
to  answer  for  his  boldness  in  marrying  her  without  their  assent 
and  recommendation." 

When  the  Lord  Lion,  vested  in  his  most  awful  paraphernalia, 
entered  the  dueen's  presence-chamber  to  perform  officially  the 
summons,  the  scene  that  ensued  was  extraordinary.  Glueen 
Margaret  received  him  in  the  wonted  state  of  regnant-majesty, 
supported  by  her  juvenile  spouse  at  her  side,  and  by  his  stalwart 
grandsire.  Lord  Drummond,  who  was  all-powerful  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Perth.  The  Lord  Lion  demanded  to  be  admitted, 
not  to  the  presence  of  the  reigning  sovereign  of  Scotland,  but 
only  to  "my  lady  Glueen,  the  mother  of  his  Grace  our  King." 
This  was  a  terrible  dereliction,  the  fruits  of  her  recent  deposition 
in  council  1  Of  course  it  produced  great  irritation  in  the  tempers 
of  all  the  dueen's  partisans,  to  say  nothing  of  her  own,  insomuch 
that  when  the  Herald-King  approached  the  Earl  of  Angus  to 
announce  that  he  was  summoned  before  the  national  council. 
Lord  Drummond  bestowed  on  him  a  thundering  box-on-the-ear.^ 

The  sacred  ear  of  a  Lion-King  had  never  before  met  with  such 

1  Godscroft's  Hist,  of  the  Douglases,  p.  241. 

^  History  of  the  Drummonds.     Scott's  Hist,  of  Gowrie. 

VOL.  I. — E 


98  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

a  rebuke.  He,  Sir  William  Comyii/  "  whom  royal  James  him- 
self had  crowned,"  he,  attired  in  the  solemn  insignia  of  his  office, 
which  Henry  VIII.  himself,  at  the  head  of  his  victorious  army  in 
France,  had  respected,  when  he  carried  from  his  royal  lord, 
James  IV.,  a  defiance  a  lu  outrance,  and  withal  a  most  incon- 
venient declaration  of  war — he,  to  be  culled  and  buffeted  !  How 
my  Lord  Lion  made  his  retreat  from  the  presence  of  the  dueen 
and  her  uncivilized  partisans  has  never  been  distinctly  described, 
but  a  due  notation  was  made  of  the  outrage,  as  Lord  Drummond 
afterward  found  to  his  cost. 

The  Privy  Council  forthwith  deputed  the  Lord  Lion  to  proceed 
to  the  Duke  of  Albany,  in  France,  with  the  official  announce- 
ment of  his  election  as  Sovereign-Regent  on  the  Q^ueen's  forfeit- 
ure, entreating  him  to  come  to  the  assistance  of  the  kingdom,  as 
beseemed  the  Prince  of  the  blood  nearest  to  the  royal  family. 

The  Glneen  gave  her  own  version  of  the  fray  with  the  Lord 
Lion  in  one  of  her  dispatches  to  her  brother  Henry  VIII.  ;  but 
she  denies  positively  the  box-on-the-ear — saying  that  all  the 
trouble  arose  from  my  Lord  Drummond  having  only  "  shaked  his 
sleeve  at  a  herald,^  and  gave  him  on  the  breast  with  his  hand, 
because  the  said  herald  behaved  himself  otherwise  than  he  ought 
to  do,  saying  '  That  he  came  in  message  from  the  Lords  to  my 
Lady  the  King's  mother.'  " 

From  the  Q^ueen's  narrative  it  appears  that  this  singular  scene 
took  place  at  Stirling  Castle,  and  she  implies  that  the  resistance 
was  made  on  account  of  an  attempt  to  take  away  her  children 
rather  than  her  new  husband.  However,  her  statement  gives 
perfect  authenticity  to  the  historians  who  state  that  there  was  an 
assault  made  on  the  Lion  King  in  her  presence.^ 

The  next  outrage  the  Q,ueen  committed,  by  means  of  her 
young  hot-headed  husband,  was  on  the  Lord  Chancellor  Beton, 
Archbishop  of  Glasgow,  who  had  expressed  his  disapproval  of 
the  M'^edlock  of  the  Glueen  with  Angus — which,  indeed,  by  the 
will  of  James  IV.,  unhinged  the  whole  government  of  the  king- 
dom. W^orse  confusion  followed  when  the  imperious  bridegroom, 
at  the  instigation  of  Margaret,  arrested  the  Lord  Chancellor  at 

^  Sir  Walter  Scott  has  owned  to  making  an  anachronism  of  twenty-seven 
years,  by  quoting  Sir  David  Ijindsay  as  James  IV.'s  Lord  Lion. 

2  Memorial  of  Queen  Margaret.     Cott.  MS.  b.  vi.  f.  108. 

3  Lesley,  p.  102.     Strathallan  MS.     Scott's  Hist,  of  Gowrie. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  99 

Perth,  and  tore  from  him  the  Great  Seal  of  Scotland/  The  no- 
bility, justly  incensed  at  the  insult  on  the  law,  in  the  person  of 
its  dispenser,  flew  to  arms.  None  sided  with  the  Q,ueen  except- 
ing her  particular  dependents  and  her  husband's  clan  and  faction. 
Margaret,  rather  than  Angus,  deserves  the  blame  of  an  action 
stupidly  despotic,  because  she  will  be  found  to  repeat  the  same 
folly  more  than  once  in  the  course  of  her  stormy  career,  at  a 
time  when  she  was  by  no  means  amenable  to  his  influence. 

Strife  and  trouble  beset  Margaret  Tudor  from  the  hour  when 
her  imprudent  love-match  became  public.  But  she  fancied  her- 
self sufficiently  strong  in  the  support  of  her  brother  of  England 
to  defy  any  opposition  the  Scottish  Parliament  might  meditate 
against  the  continuation  of  her  reign  as  Glueen  Regent.  There 
is  reason  to  suppose  that  she  had  lavished  on  her  young  hus- 
band a  great  part  of  the  treasure  which  the  King  her  husband 
had  confined  to  her  keeping.  In  reprisal,  the  Scottish  Council 
stopped  her  dower-rents,  which  proceeding  she  set  forth  as  an 
act  of  injustice  as  flagrant  as  if  she  had  not  appropriated  the 
national  funds. 

Little  more  than  a  twelvemonth  had  elapsed  from  the  death 
of  James  IV.  when  she  dictated  a  dispatch  to  her  brother,  in 
acknowledgment  of  his  promised  support,  declaring  "  that  his 
loving  letters  had  arrived  at  her  castle  of  Stirling,  November  22  ; 
that  she  showed  them  to  the  lords  of  her  party  (chiefly  the  kin 
and  connections  of  the  Douglas  family),  to  their  great  consola- 
tion." 

"My  party-acZ2;ers«r^,"  adds  Glueen  Margaret,  "continues  in 
their  malice,  and  proceeds  in  their  Parliament,  usurping  the 
King's  authority  as  I  and  my  lords  were  of  no  reputation,  reputing 
us  as  rebels." 

Hitherto  the  Scottish  Parliament  had  acquiesced,  for  love  of  the 
late  King,  in  his  testament,  which  superseded  the  national  laws 
of  Scotland  by  making  Margaret  Glueen  Hegent.  Her  words, 
above  quoted,  mark  the  period  when  the  Parliament,  following 
the  lead  of  the  Privy  Council,  took  the  sovereign  power  from  her. 
Some  degree  of  anarchy  ensued,  the  Q.ueen  exercising  regnant 
power  at  Stirling  and  Perth,  while  the  Parliament  ruled  at 
Edinburgh — the  Q,ueen  having  possession  of  the  persons  of  the 

^  This  happened  soon  after  her  marriage  became  public,  according  to 
Hollinshed's  History  of  Scotland,  vol.  i.  p.  301. 


100  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

infant-sovereign  and  the  babe  his  brother,  while  the  Parliament 
had  the  Lord  Chancellor,  though  not  his  Great  Seal.  The  peo- 
ple, it  may  be  observed,  held  the  house  of  Douglas  (with  which 
the  Gtueen  identified  herself)  in  exceeding  detestation.  They  had 
suffered  too  much  from  the  tyranny  of  those  unscrupulous  oligarchs, 
to  bear  them  any  good-will,  whether  they  belonged  to  the 
"  black"  branch  or  the  "  red"  branch  of  the  same  line,  which  last 
were  the  Angus-Douglases. 

When  Glueen  Margaret  found  that  the  people  in  general 
disobeyed  her  regal  authority,  she  failed  not  to  call  in  the  fire 
and  sword  of  the  English  to  establish  her  own  failing  power, 
without  much  heed  as  to  whether  they  would  ever  leave  the 
country  if  they  gained  it. 

"  I  beseech,"  ^  she  says  to  her  brother,  "  that  you  would  make 
haste  with  your  army  both  sea  and  land,  especial  on  the  chamber- 
lain (Lord  Fleming).  On  that  other  side  the  Prior  of  St.  An- 
drews (Hepburn),  with  the  power  of  my  counter-party  (the 
Parliament),  has  laid  siege  to  the  castle  of  St.  Andrews,  which  I 
would  your  navy  would  revenge,  for  it  stands  on  the  sea-side, 
fore-against  Berwick  by  north."^  I  have  sent  my  husband, 
Lord  Angus,  to  break  the  siege,  if  he  may,  this  23d  day  (of 
November)." 

Her  husband  displayed  no  remarkable  prowess  in  his  warlike 
expeditions.  His  next  expedition  was  to  relieve  his  uncle  Gavin 
Douglas,  besieged  in  the  castle  of  St.  Andrews,  against  John 
Hepburn,  who  had  been  elected  to  the  dignity  of  Primate  by  the 
chapter  of  St.  Andrews. 

"  I  am  at  great  expenses,"  continues  Glueen  Margaret's  dis- 
patch,^ "  every  day  a  thousand  in  wages,  and  my  money  is  nigh 
hand  wasted  ;  if  you  send  not  soon  other  succors  in  men  and 
money  I  shall  be  S2^^er-expended,  which  were  to  my  dishonor,  for 
I  can  get  no  answer  of  my  rents,  as  I  showed  you  before.  All 
the  hope  that  my  party-adversaries  have  is  in  the  Duke  of 
Albany's  coming,  which  I  beseech  you  to  hinder  in  any  way  ;  for 
if  he  happens  to  come  before  your  army,  I  doubt  that  some  of  my 
party  will  incline  to  him  for  dread.     There  is  some  of  the  lords 

1  Cott.  MS.  Cal.  B.  i.  fol.  164. 

^  Margaret's  geographical  definitions  are  not  very  correct,  but  the  words 
are  hers. 

8  Cott.  MS.  ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  101 

of  my  party  who  dread  that  your  army  shall  do  them  scathe,  and 
that  their  lands  shall  be  destroyed  with  the  fury  of  the  army, 
wherefore  I  would  that  you  wrote  to  them  that  their  lands  and 
goods  shall  not  be  hurt,  and  that  they  shall  be  recompensed 
double  and  treble. 

"  The  King,  my  son,  and  his  little  brother,  iwo?,ioers  well,  and 
are  right  life-hke  children,  thanked  be  Almighty  God. 

"  It  is  told  me  that  the  lord-adversaries  are  purposed  to  siege 
me  in  this  castle  of  Stirling.  I  would,  therefore,  that  Lord 
Chamberlain  Fleming  be  held  waking  in  the  mean  time  with  the 
Borderers.  I  trow  I  shall  defend  me  well  enough  from  the 
others  till  the  coming  of  the  (English)  army. 

"  I  pray  you  to  give  credit  to  Master  Adam  Wilkinson  in  other 
things  as  it  is  written  by  him,  and  thank  him  for  his  good  service, 
and  the  peril  he  was  in  for  my  sake  in  the  ship  that  was  broken 
(wrecked)." 

The  Lord  Lion  of  Scotland,  that  worthy  herald-king  who  had 
received  the  indignity  of  a  box-on-the-ear  from  Lord  Drummond, 
had  embarked  to  carry  the  news  of  his  ill-treatment  by  the 
Q^ueen's  party  to  the  elected  Regent  of  Scotland,  "  and  other 
messages,"  as  the  (iueen  writes,  "  sealed  with  the  Great  Seal  of 
Scotland,  which  seal  they  keep  masterfully  from  me  and  my 
lords,  and  use  it  as  if  they  were  kings  I"  The  Lion  Herald  was 
shipwrecked,  as  the  Q,ueen  observes  with  no  little  exultation  ; 
and  she  says,  in  the  presumption  of  her  egotism,  "  God  was  of  my 
party,  seeing  that  he  letted  (hindered)  the  Lord  Lion's  message, 
and  furthered  mine  I"  ^ 

In  the  conclusion  of  this  remarkable  epistle  she  requests  her 
brother  to  notice,  "  that  if  her  letters  were  only  signed  Margaret 
R.,  and  no  more,  they  were  mere  state  papers,  either  forged  or 
forced  from  her.  She  ends  this  genuine  transcript  of  her  mind 
with  these  words — "  Brother,  all  the  welfare  of  me  and  my  chil- 
dren rests  in  your  hands,  which  I  pray  Jesu  to  help  and  keep 
eternally  to  his  pleasure.  At  Stirling,  the  23d  day  of  November. 
Your  loving  sister,  Margaret  R.."  This  addition  of  the  words, 
therefore,  "  your  loving  sister,"  was  to  prove  the  test  of  the 
authenticity  of  her  letters.     Subsequently  Margaret  perpetrated 

1  Ibid.  It  seems  probable  that  the  personal  violence  Angus  offered  to 
the  Lord  Chancellor  and  his  Great  Seal  occurred  after  the  date  of  this  letter, 
November,  1514,  unless  the  Parliament  had  a  new  Great  Seal  made. 


102  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

a  great  deal  of  deceit  and  double-dealing  under  this  preconcerted 
signal. 

It  is  a  little  singular  that  the  proud  brother  of  Margaret  Tudor 
manifested  complacency  at  his  sister's  alliance  with  the  Earl  of 
Angus.  England  had,  in  fact,  found  Scotland  so  formidable  since 
the  reign  of  the  Bruce,  and  especially  during  the  sway  of  her  late 
great  sovereign,  that  Henry  YIIL  and  his  Council  were  glad  of 
any  event  which  promised  the  distracting  diversion  of  internal 
feuds  to  their  active  neighbor.  Although  Henry  VIII.  was  never 
consulted  by  Q.ueen  Margaret  or  her  second  spouse  on  their 
union,  he  mentions  it  with  approval  in  his  state  papers,  and 
always  acknowledged  Angus  as  his  brother-in-law. 

The  Glueen  spent  the  winter  at  Perth,  from  whence  several  of 
her  letters  extant  are  dated.  Her  meditations  were  how  best  to 
be  revenged  on  the  parliamentary  lords  who  had  deposed  her 
from  her  reign  as  Regent  Glueen ;  and  she  resolved  to  take  the 
first  opportunity  of  escaping  to  England  with  her  sons,  knowing 
how  wofully  Scotland  would  be  crippled  by  the  detention  of  her 
sovereign  in  England,  as  in  the  instances  of  David  II.  and  of 
James  I. 

Wolsey  and  her  brother  perpetually  urged  her  to  take  this 
step.  "  It  comforts  my  heart  to  hear  your  fraternal  desire,"  says 
dueen  Margaret,^  in  one  of  her  letters  from  Perth  to  Henry 
VIII.  ;  "but  it  is  impossible  to  be  performed  by  any  manner  of 
fashion  that  I,  or  my  husband  (Angus),  or  his  uncle  Gavin,  can 
devise.  Considering  what  watcii  and  spies  there  is  daily  where 
I  am,  I  dare  disclose  my  counsel  to  none  but  God !  An'  I  were 
such  a  woman  that  I  might  go  with  my  bairn  on  mine  arm,  I 
trow  I  should  not  be  long  from  you,  whose  presence  I  desire  more 
than  any  man.  I  trust,  dear  brother,  to  defend  me  from  mine 
enemies,  if  I  had  sufficient  for  expenses  till  the  coming  of  your 
help  ;  but  I  am  so  super-expended  that  I  doubt  that  poverty 
shall  (will)  cause  me  to  consent  to  some  of  their  minds,  Avhich  I 
shall  never  do  against  your  counsel  while  I  have  a  groat  to 
spend.  Wherefore  I  pray  you  to  send  me  some  money,  for  it  is 
not  for  your  honor  that  I  or  my  children  should  want." 

Ever  since  the  death  of  James  IV.  a  great  portion  of  the 
Scottish  nobility  and  gentry  had  sedulously  invited  the  banished 

^  Cotton  MS.  Calig.,  B.iii.  f.  278.  Queen  Margaret  to  Henry  VIII,  Jan. 
23,  Perth. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  103 

Duke  of  Albany  to  return  to  Scotland,  and  take  upon  him  the 
executive  department  of  the  government.  But  Albany,  though 
an  exile  in  France,  was  exceedingly  happy  and  beloved  there. 
He  was  one  of  the  most  renowned  warriors  m  Louis  XII. 's  Italian 
wars,  and  was,  moreover,  both  by  inheritance  and  marriage,  the 
lord  of  some  of  the  fairest  provinces  in  that  pleasant  land.  When 
he  was  invited  to  share  the  government  with  U,ueen  Margaret, 
he  positively  refused,  saying  that  "  the  King  of  France  could  not 
spare  him;  moreover,  his  possessions  in  Scotland  were  confisca- 
ted, and  till  they  were  restored  he  should  not  trouble  himself 
with  the  country."  Unfortunately  Glueen  Margaret  was  dow- 
ered on  his  earldom  of  March,  which  rendered  such  restoration 
difficult. 

However,  that  clear  ideas  may  arise  relative  to  a  prince  whose 
career  was  for  some  years  intimately  involved  with  that  of  Mar- 
garet Tudor,  here  follows  a  rapid  sketch  of  his  parentage  and 
position  in  France. 

The  Regent  Albany  was  the  son  of  Alexander,  Duke  of  Albany, 
that  brother  of  James  III.  who  had  been  spirited  up  by  Edward 
IV.  to  act  the  same  part  in  Scotland  toward  his  sovereign,  King 
James,  that  Edward's  own  brother,  Uichard  of  Gloucester,  after- 
ward performed  in  England.  Albany  had  declared  the  royal 
children,  his  nephews,  illegitimate,  and  withal  did  his  best  to 
wrest  the  crown  from  his  brother,  which  he  would  have  basely 
held  of  the  English  King  as  a  vassal-prince.  It  is  one  of  the 
stern  lessons  with  which  liistory  is  replete,  if  politicians  were  not 
too  supercilious  to  heed  them,  to  view  Edward  IV.  deliberately 
planning,  for  the  destruction  of  his  Scottish  neighbor,  the  proto- 
type of  the  same  species  of  treason  which  rendered  his  owii  family 
desolate,  and  caused  the  deposition  and  the  murder  of  both  his  sons. 

Alexander,  Duke  of  Albany,  having  failed  in  his  attempts,  and 
being  taken  prisoner,  was  expecting  hourly  to  be  put  to  death  in 
Edinburgh  Castle,  when,  by  the  aid  of  his  faithful  and  devoted 
page,  he  escaped  from  a  great  height  by  means  of  a  rope.  In 
the  course  of  the  escapade,  the  page  fell  to  the  ground  and  broke 
his  leg,  but  Albany  ran  the  greatest  risk  of  detection  by  carrying 
him  off  on  his  back.^  A  man  was  naturally  meant  for  good  who 
could  be,  in  moments  replete  with  peril,  thus  alive  to  the  feelings 
of  gratitude  and  generosity. 

i  Douglas  Peerage. 


104  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

The  fugitive  Scotch  prince  escaped  to  France,  where  he  mar- 
tried  the  heiress  of  a  princely  house,  Anne  de  la  Tour.*  He  was 
killed  by  accident,  in  Paris,  tilting  at  a  tournament,  1486.  He 
left  one  son  by  Anne  de  la  Tour,  John  Duke  of  Albany,  born  in 
exile,  who  became  fatherless  at  four  or  five  years  of  age.  This 
was  the  Regent  of  Scotland.  He  married  a  lady  of  his  mother's 
family — her  niece — a  great  heiress,  Agnes  de  la  Tour,  Countess 
of  Auvergne  and  Lauragais.  She  made  him  count  of  the  latter 
district,  and  gave  him  a  great  number  of  lordships.  They  were 
married  in  1505.  The  Duchess  of  Albany  was  aunt  to  Catharine 
de  Medicis,  afterward  Glueen  Hegent  of  France,  who  finally  be- 
came heiress  to  the  vast  possessions  of  la  Tour  Auvergne. 

When  Louis  XH.  died,  his  successor,  Francis  I.,  became  desi- 
rous of  obtaining  influence  in  Scotland  ;  he  therefore  urged  his 
friend  and  comrade  in  arms  to  accept  the  offered  government  of 
that  country.  Albany  was  exceedingly  unwilling  to  leave  his 
wife,  whose  health  was  not  strong ;  but  after  Scotland  had  re- 
stored him  to  his  rank  he  had  no  farther  excuse.  Accordingly 
he  sent  his  friend,  Antony  d'Arcy,  Sieur  de  Bastie,  together  with 
his  cousin  the  Earl  of  Arran  (who  had  never  dared  to  return  to 
Scotland  since  his  unlucky  naval  expedition),  to  take  possession 
of  the  citadel  of  Dunbar  in  his  name.  De  Bastie  knew  Scotland 
well.  He  had  been  a  great  favorite  with  James  IV.  ;  he  had 
tilted  at  dueen  Margaret's  marriage  with  that  King ;  he  seems 
to  have  inspired  the  generous  mind  of  Albany  with  the  greatest 
enthusiasm  for  the  character  of  his  royal  cousin,  James  IV. 

It  was  on  the  18th  of  May,  1515,  that  the  Regent  Albany 
landed  at  Dumbarton,  with  eight  ships  full  of  French  stores  and 
some  men-at-arms.  Lord  Home  met  him  at  the  head  of  ten 
thousand  horsemen,  his  March-riders.*  He  expected  to  be  ca- 
ressed as  a  powerful  partisan  ;  but  the  French  cavalier  de  Bastie, 
had,  it  is  supposed,  explained  to  Albany  that  this  treacherous 
chieftain  had  turned  the  day  of  Flodden  against  Scotland,  and 
caused  the  death  of  James  IV.,  for  which  Albany  vowed  at  some 
day  or  other  to  punish  him.  As  it  was,  he  treated  him  dryly, 
and  scarcely  civilly ;  and  when  Home,  who  Avas  dressed  gayly 
in  Kendal-green  velvet,  was  endeavoring  to  make  Albany  under- 

^  Her  mother  was  a  princess  of  the  house  of  Bourbon. 
2  Hume  of  Godscroft,  who  abuses  Albany  for  his  ungraciousness  to  Lord 
Home,  his  clansman. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  105 

Stand  his  value  as  a  feudal  chieftain,  Albany  made  a  quotation 
in  Latin,  to  the  efiect  that  his  immense  train  of  followers  was 
not  adapted  to  a  subject,  and  that  a  gorgeous  dress  ill  became  a 
mean  and  diminutive  person.^ 

Lord  Home  had  detested  Q.ueen  Margaret  and  his  infant  sove- 
reign, because  all  their  friends  suspected  him  of  treachery  at 
Flodden.  He  had  hoped  for  mighty  influence  with  the  new 
Regent,  who,  being  a  Frenchman  by  birth  and  language,  he 
hoped  was  ignorant  of  all  reports  against  him,  and  only  conscious 
of  his  power.  Licensed  at  Albany's  contempt  for  his  person  and 
greatness,  he  withdrew  in  the  full  determination  of  setting  up 
Clueen  Margaret's  title  to  the  Regency,  against  Albany,  with  all 
convenient  speed. 

Meantime  Q,ueen  Margaret  advanced  from  her  strong  hold  of 
Edinburgh  Castle  to  meet  the  Regent,  and  do  him  all  possible 
honor. ^  Perhaps  the  repulse  that  Albany  gave  to  her  enemy, 
Lord  Home,  had  pleased  her ;  it  is  certain  that  she  at  first  was 
on  very  friendly  terms  wdth  the  rival  Regent.  Some  flatterer 
had  persuaded  her  that  Albany  was  much  disappointed  because 
her  marriage  with  Angus  prevented  him  from  ofiering  her  his 
hand ;  but  how  that  matter  was  to  be  arranged  it  is  diflicult  to 
say,  as  Albany  had  one  good  wife  alive  in  France.  The  letters 
of  Margaret  perpetually  dwell  on  this  subject,  more  than  could 
have  been  expected,  considering  the  matrimonial  ties  by  which 
each  was  bound. ^ 

The  Parliament  at  Edinburgh  having,  in  July,  1515,  solemnly 
invested  the  new  Regent  Avith  the  sword  and  scepter  of  state, 
Lord  Drummond  was  called  to  account  for  his  audacity  in  striking 
the  Lord  Lion  of  Scotland  when  performing  the  solemn  behests 
of  the  Council ;  and,  the  crime  being  proved  against  him,  the 
Regent  sent  him  prisoner  to  Blackness  Castle,  and  confiscated  all 
his  lands  and  goods.  Gavin  Douglas  was  committed  to  prison 
for  the  pretense  he  made  to  the  Primacy,  to  the  great  tribulation 
of  dueen  Margaret,  whose  own  version  of  the  matter  shall  here 
be  quoted.  After  mentioning  the  unaccountable  alarm  she  was 
in  lest  she  should  have  been  forced  by  the  Scotch  to  marry  Al- 
bany, on  which  account  she  pretends  that  she  took  Angus,  she 
proceeds  to  detail  the  dispute  with  the  Lord  Lion,  saying  "  that 

^  Hume  of  Godscroft.  ^  Lesley's  History  of  Scotland,  p.  102. 

«  Ibid.  p.  103. 


106  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

the  Duke  of  Albany  had  made  fan*  and  pleasant  semblance  to  her 
at  his  first  coming ;  but  now,  by  the  advice  of  his  council,  was 
meditating  to  take  her  tender  children  from  her  keeping." ' 

But  the  confiscation  of  Lord  Drummond,  and  his  incarceration, 
and  withal  that  of  her  uncle  by  marriage,  Gavin  Douglas,  were 
the  points  which  more  immediately  afflicted  her.  "  So,"  she 
continues,  "  I  went  down  from  Edinburgh  Castle  sore  weeping  to 
Holyrood,  where  the  Regent  lodged,  entreating  him  to  let  them 
out,  as  they  were  the  principal  members  of  the  Council ;  but  grace 
I  gat  none."^  It  is  said  Glueen  Margaret  asked  grace  for  Drum- 
mond on  her  knees,  weeping  all  the  time.  She  finishes  her  dis- 
patch, which  seems  addressed  to  the  Scotch  ambassador  resident 
in  London  for  the  information  of  her  brother,  Henry  VIIL,  by 
exculpating  herself  from  "  ever  inviting  this  Albany,  who  had 
done  nothing  but  vex  and  trouble  her  and  her  friends."^  "All 
her  party,"  she  complains,  "  had  deserted  her,  except  her  husband 
the  Earl  of  Angus,  and  Lord  Home." 

Thus,  in  the  course  of  six  weeks,  the  latter,  from  acting  as  her 
chief  opponent,  had  become  her  partisan  against  the  Regent. 

The  Parliament  having  joined  the  Glueen  in  petitioning  the 
Regent  for  clemency  to  Lord  Drummond,  he  was  pardoned  by  the 
Regent,  and  his  estates  were  restored.  It  was  the  last  political 
agitation  in  which  the  aged  statesman  engaged.  The  threatened 
severity  impending  over  him  had  a  remarkable  effect  in  taming 
the  Earl  of  Angus  and  his  brother  George,  when  Glueen  Margaret 
commenced  a  struggle  with  the  Regent. 

A  more  difficult  undertaking  than  the  deprivation  of  her  po- 
litical power  was  to  wrest  her  children  from  Glueen  Margaret. 
The  Regent  evidently  demurred  on  a  proceeding  in  which  the 
kindest  measures  taken  could  not  fail  of  seeming  cruel  in  the  ex- 
treme. July  had  nearly  passed  away,  yet  Q.ueen  Margaret  still 
held  possession  of  her  little  sons  at  the  castle  of  Edinburgh. 
Albany  made  his  approaches  v/ith  great  caution,  while  the  Par- 
liament was  sitting  at  Tolbooth.  There  the  national  council 
chose  eight  peers,  and  out  of  them  Albany  was  to  appoint  four 
by  lot ;  and  from  the  four  Glueen  Margaret  was  to  choose  three 
to  intrust  with  the  care  of  her  royal  infants. 

The  four  peers  went   in  solemn  procession  from  the  Tolbooth 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  f.  115,  British  Museum. 

2  Cott.  MS.,  ibid.  '  Ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  107 

(where  the  Parliament  sat)  up  to  Edinburgh  Castle-gate.  All 
the  Guicl  Town  followed  them  on  foot,  in  immense  concourse,  to 
behold  the  exciting  drama,  in  which  their  Glueen  and  little  ones 
played  the  principal  parts.  The  gates  were  unfolded,  and  the 
people  beheld  the  dueen  standing  witliin  the  entrance,  holding 
the  young  King,  with  his  hand  clasped  in  hers  ;  behind  her  was 
the  nurse,  with  the  infant  Duke  of  Ross  in  her  arms ;  near  her 
stood  her  husband  Angus,  and  her  household  made  a  half-circle 
in  the  rearward.^ 

The  Q/Ueen  had  certainly  drawn  up  her  little  force  with  great 
scenic  skill,  and  it  had  its  due  effect  on  the  good  people  of  Edin- 
burgh, who  hailed  the  tableaux  vivans  before  them  with  long 
and  loud  acclamations.  When  some  degree  of  silence  was  re- 
stored, which  was  only  when  the  populace  had  shouted  them- 
selves hoarse,  Q.ueen  Margaret,  seeing  the  approach  of  the  dele- 
gates from  Tolbooth,  gave  the  words,  with  much  majesty  and 
command,  of  "  Stand  I  ^  Declare  the  cause  of  your  coming  be- 
fore you  draw  nearer  to  your  sovereigns." 

The  four  Scottish  peers  replied  "  that  they  were  deputed  by 
the  Parliament,  then  sitting,  to  demand  and  receive  their  infant 
king  and  his  brother." 

All  the  answer  Margaret  A^ouchsafed  was,  "Drop  the  port- 
cullis !"  To  the  consternation  of  the  parliamentary  deputies, 
the  massive  iron  gate  thundered  down  betwixt  them  and  the 
royal  group. 

The  dueen  then  addressed  the  lords  commissioned  to  take  her 
infants  from  her  arms. 

"  This  Castle  of  Edinburgh  is  part  of  my  infeoffment  !  By 
the  late  King,  my  husband,  I  was  made  sole  governess  of  it, 
nor  to  any  mortal  shall  yield  the  command.  But  I  require,  out 
of  respect  to  the  Parliament  and  to  the  nation,  six  days  to  con- 
sider their  mandate.  Por  my  charge  is  infinite  in  import ;  and, 
alas,  my  councilors  be  few  !" 

She  then  led  away  her  little  monarch  from  the  gateway,  fol- 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Cal.  B.  ii.  £  281,  July,  1515.  Pinkerton  and  Tytler  have  re- 
ferred to  the  letter  of  Lord  Dacre  to  tlie  Council :  it  is  evidently  from 
the  information  of  Dr.  Magnus,  an  English  priest,  usually  resident  at 
Edinburgh  as  Margaret's  confessor,  and  as  the  resident-minister  for  English 
affairs. 

2  Cott.  Cal.  ii.  p.  848. 


108 


MARGARET     TUDOR. 


lowed  by  her  train  ;   and  the  peers  retired  in  great  admiration  of 
her  beauty  and  high  spirit. 

Angus  was  by  no  means  remarkable  for  the  latter  quality,  or 
at  least  did  not  exert  it  in  this  picturesque  historical  scene.  In 
great  alarm,  lest  he  might  have  forfeited  life  and  lands  by  disobey- 
ing the  Regent,  then  sitting  in  full  national  council,  he  had  a 
notarial  instrument  drawn,  attested  by  proper  witnesses,  affirm- 
ing that  he  had  desired  the  Q.ueen  to  surrender  the  royal  chil- 
dren.^ 

Angus  sent  this  parchment  to  the  Hegent.  From  that  mo- 
ment Angus,  it  may  be  perceived,  neutralized  every  efibrt  the 
dueen  made  to  place  him  in  sovereign  power  by  her  side.  It 
is  likewise  evident  that,  from  the  same  period,  Albany  treated 
him  as  a  fellow  of  no  reckoning — one  who  was  in  action,  as  in 
years,  "childish  young,"  according  to  Lord  Dacre's  expressive 
phrase.  In  short,  much  analogy  may  be  traced  between  the 
conduct  and  character  of  Angus  and  of  his  unfortunate  grandson 
Darnley  ;  only,  if  the  conduct  of  the  latter  is  really  viewed  with- 
out prejudice,  it  presents  more  courage  and  power  of  will.  Both 
were  the  husbands  of  reigning  Q^ueens  of  Scotland  at  the  age  of 
nineteen. 

Clueen  Margaret,  perhaps,  did  not  know  how  thoroughly  her 
lord  and  master  had  succumbed  to  the  authority  of  the  Regent 
of  Scotland,  as  it  is  likely  that  Angus  consulted  not  his  royal 
lady  concerning  his  submissive  message,  which  was  accompanied 
by  a  promise  that  he  would  manage  her  so  that  the  King  and 
his  brother  should  be  yielded  peacefully,  before  the  six  days  she 
had  asked  for  deliberation.  The  Q,ueen,  on  the  fifth  day,  made 
an  offer  to  the  Parliament,  "  that,  if  the  infant  James  V.  and  his 
brother  were  left  to  her  care,  she  M''ould  maintain  them  on  her 
dowry  ;  and  that  she  would  submit  that  they  should  be  com- 
mitted to  the  custody  of  the  Earl  Marshal,  of  Lord  Home,  Lord 
Chamberlain,  of  Sir  Robert  Lawder  of  Bass,  and  of  her  husband, 
Lord  Angus."  ^ 

'  The  words  of  Lord  Dacre's  disp.atch  are—"  And  the  Earl  of  Anguish 
said,  and  showed  openly,  it  was  his  vjoll  and  mind  that  the  King  and  his 
brother  should  be  delivered  according  to  the  decree  of  parliament ;  and 
thereupon  desired  to  give  an  instrument,  for  fear  of  losing  his  life  and 
lands." 

^  Lord  Dacre's  narrative  to  the  council  of  England,  Cott.  MS.  Calig.  B.  ii. 
281.     Aug.  1516. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  109 

Margaret  had  anticipated  that  her  proposal  would  be  refused ; 
she,  in  consequence,  fled  to  Stirling  Castle,  whither  Albany  fol- 
lowed her  at  the  head  of  seven  thousand  men.  He  summoned 
her  to  surrender  (August  4). 

Angus  was  not  with  the  Q.ueen  at  this  juncture  ;  for  when 
she  fled  to  Stirling,  he  retired  to  his  titular  county,  following  the 
proverb  of  his  family,  which  was  often  on  his  lips,  "  that  he 
would  rather  hear  the  lark  sing  in  the  open  country,  than  the 
mouse  cheep" — shut  up  within  the  walls  of  a  fortress.  All  the 
answer  the  Regent  vouchsafed  to  the  notarial  deed  of  obedience 
which  Angus  had  sent  him,  was  an  invitation  to  join  his  muster 
at  Stirling;  and  besiege  his  own  wife  ^ — a  proceeding  beyond  the 
bounds  of  Angus's  intended  submission,  which  merely  meant  a 
duteous  care  of  self,  by  keeping  out  of  harm's  way.  As  for 
marching  with  the  Scottish  Regent  to  besiege  the  lady-Glueen 
his  spouse,  it  was  more  than  he  dared  do. 

Q/Ueen  Margaret,  finding  that  her  husband  had  decamped,  had 
no  wish  to  stand  a  siege  in  Stirling  Castle  from  a  warrior  of  the 
Regent's  military  fame.  So,  giving  the  Regent  intimation  that 
she  was  ready  to  surrender  her  infants  into  his  keeping,  she  pre- 
sented herself  at  the  gate  of  Stirling  Castle,  with  her  little 
James  V.  She  put  in  his  tiny  hands  the  massive  keys  of  the 
palatial  fortress,  and,  with  a  nod,  directed  him  to  give  them  to 
the  Regent. 

Albany  knelt  and  received  the  keys  and  the  regal  boy  at  once 
in  his  arms,  and  bestowed  on  him  many  caresses."  He  treated 
Margaret  with  great  kindness  and  attention,  giving  her  leave  to 
remain  with  her  children  as  long  as  she  liked,  and  to  see  them 
whenever  she  pleased  ;  but  she  was  not  permitted  to  remove 
them  from  Stirling  Castle  ;  as  the  sudden  march  of  Albany  was 
occasioned  by  certain  intelligence  which  convinced  him  that  she 
had  intended  to  abduct  them  to  England  on  the  night  of  Au- 
gust 4.' 

The  forced  surrender,  by  the  widow  of  Edward  IV.,  of  the 
royal  children  of  England,  bore  an  appalling  resemblance  to 
Margaret's  deliver}^  of  the  royal  infants  James  V.  and  the  baby 
Alexander,  to  the  Regent  Albany.  The  whole  world  expected 
that  James  V.  would  disappear  as  speedily  from  this  world's  scene 

^  Lord  Caere's  Letter.     Cott.  MS.  CalJg.  B.  11.  281.     Aug.  1515. 

^  Pinkerton.     Lesley,  p.  108.  ^  Ibid. 


110  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

as  his  relative  Edward  V.  Gtueen  Margaret  loudly  proclaimed 
that  such  would  be  the  case.  Albany  bore  the  angry  imputations 
of  the  alarmed  mother  with  exemplary  patience.  Nevertheless, 
her  plots  became  incessant  to  further  their  escape  into  England. 

A  vigilant  eye  was  kept  on  Lord  Home  by  the  Regent  ;  for  he 
knew  that  it  was  on  this  suspicious  character  that  the  Q,ueen 
chiefly  depended  for  the  abduction  of  her  little  sons  from  Stirling. 

The  delicate  situation  of  the  Glueen,  her  weakness  at  such 
times,  when  she  always  hovered  on  the  brink  of  the  grave,  even 
when  surrounded  by  all  the  care  of  her  household,  made  her  little 
calculated  to  undertake  the  perils  and  hardships  attendant  on 
her  scheme.  But  she  fully  intended  making  the  seclusion  of  her 
sick-chamber  instrumental  to  her  escapade. 

In  the  course  of  the  ensuing  month,  Margaret  wrote  the  follow- 
ing letter  to  Lord  Dacre  : — ^ 

"My  Lord  Dacre — 
"  I  commend  me  to  you  as  heartily  as  I  can  ;  and  I  have  seen  your  wri- 
ting, and  understand  at  length ;  and  I  perceive  that  ye  are  not  sykerly  (cer- 
tainly) informed  mwhat  state  I  stand  m,  for  ye  trow  (trust)  'that  I  may  pass 
wherever  I  will  wish.'  It  is  not  true ;  but  this  bearer  can  show  you  the  truth 
of  all,  and  what  my  mind  is,  and  how  I  am  constrained  to  do  against  my  will. 
And  I  pray  you  give  him  credence  as  ye  would  do  to  myself,  for  it  is  o'er- 
long  to  write — for  I  have  great  trust  in  this  man. 

"  And  send  me  your  utter  mind  and  answer  in  all  thing,  and  God  keep 
you. 

"  Written  with  my  hand  this  Monday. 

"Your  friend, 

"Margaret  R." 

As  a  commencement  to  her  operations,  she  wrote  a  letter  to 
her  brother,  Henry  VIIL,  which  apparently  was  inspected  by  the 
Scottish  Council ;  for  it  professes  the  greatest  satisfaction  at  all 
the  arrangements  of  the  Regent,  while  all  her  other  epistles  mani- 
fest the  utmost  discontent.  The  Glueen  therein  announced,  that 
she  meant  to  assume  the  state  and  dignity  of  "  taking  to  her 
chamber,"  for  the  birth  of  the  child  of  Angus,  similar  to  the  cere- 
monial attending  her  confinements  when  she  was  dueen  consort 
of  Scotland.  "Brother,"  wrote  Margaret,  "I  purpose,  by  the 
grace  of  God,  to  take  my  chamber,  and  lie  in  in  my  Palace  of 

^  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  f.  84.  Printed  in  the  original  orthography  by 
Sir  H.  Ellis.     Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  127.     First  series. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  Ill 

Linlithgow,  within  this  twelve  days,  for  I  have  not  past  eight 
weeks  to  my  time  ;  at  the  which,  I  pray  Jesu  to  send  me  good 
speed,  and  happy  deliverance,  and  to  have  you,  dear  brother, 
eternally  in  his  keeping."     Her  date  is,  Edinburgh,  August  20.* 

The  ceremonial  of  "taking  her  chamber"  withdrew  Margaret 
from  the  public  eye  for  some  weeks  ;  and  that  period  she  meant 
to  employ  in  stealing  her  infants,  by  the  aid  of  Lord  Home,  and 
escaping  over  the  Border,  which  purpose  she  distinctly  declared 
to  Lord  Dacre. 

The  Glueen  was,  to  all  appearance,  settled  at  Linlithgow  in 
her  chamber,  lined  with  tapestry,  where  every  breath  of  air  was 
excluded,  even  the  windows  covered  up — excepting  one,  from 
which  the  tapestry  was  occasionally  withdrawn,  if  the  royal  pa- 
tient had  a  great  wish  for  light  and  the  free  breath  of  heaven. 
According  to  the  written  ordinances  of  her  grandmother,  Margaret, 
Countess  of  Richmond,  she  was  to  be  served  by  female  officers, 
lady-chamberlains,  lady-ushers,  lady-sewers,  pantlers,  and  butlers. 
Men,  let  their  rank  or  near  relationship  be  what  they  might,  were 
only  admitted  to  converse  with  the  Glueen,  when  immured  in  her 
chamber,  on  occasions  of  life  and  death.  To  this  strange  ordi- 
nance, commenced  by  a  religious  ceremony,  the  royal  mother'' 
of  dueen  Margaret  submitted  in  Westminster  Palace,  when  she 
hersself  was  born  ;  of  course,  the  Regent  Albany  could  not  expect 
the  daughter  of  the  heiress  of  York  to  abate  one  jot  of  this  regal 
seclusion  in  her  own  Palace  at  Linlithgow.  Well  he  knew  that, 
if  lie,  or  any  other  prying  lord  of  the  creation,  had  made  inquisi- 
tion into  such  sacred  retirement,  the  tongues  of  every  female  in 
the  island,  south  as  well  as  north,  would  forthwith  have  been  in 
a  virulent  state  of  activity,  and  the  two  kingdoms  had  resounded 
with  the  "wrongs  of  the  Glueen  of  Scotland." 

Under  shelter,  therefore,  of  her  privileged  seclusion,  Glueen 
Margaret  deliberately  went  to  work,  and  commenced  her  prepa- 
rations for  escape.  First,  she  affected  to  be  very  ill  indeed,  on 
which  her  husband,  Angus,  came  to  Linlithgow  to  see  her.  The 
next  night,  she  stole  out  from  her  palace  with  him  and  four  or 
five  servants,  unaccompanied  by  any  female.  Within  two  or 
three  miles  of  Linlithgow  town,  the  Lord  Chamberlain,  Home, 

^  Cott.  MS. 

2  See  the  detail  of  the  ceremonial  of  the  Queen's  taking  her  chamber, 
Lives  of  Queens  of  England,  EUzabeth  of  York. 


112  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

met  her,  with  an  escort  of  horsemen,  "  hardy,  well  striking  fel' 
lows,"  as  she  describes  them  :  thus  guarded,  they  escaped  to  Tan- 
tallan  Castle,  the  famous  fortress  of  the  Douglas,  within  a  few 
hours'  ride  of  the  English  frontier.^ 

Before  the  (Queen's  escape  was  discovered,  Lord  Home  proposed 
that  his  rough-riders  should  fire  one  of  the  Duke  of  Albany's 
towns,  and  some  other  "  ruffling."  "  When  the  Regent's  atten- 
tion was  drawn  from  Stirling  garrison,"  Home  said  "that  he  hoped 
he  should  be  able  to  carry  off  the  royal  infants  (to  whom  his  state 
office  of  Lord  Chamberlain  gave  him  access),  and  after  joining 
the  (otueen  at  his  stronghold  of  Blackater  Castle,  they  could  from 
thence  escape  into  her  brother's  kingdom."^ 

All  succeeded,  in  regard  to  Margaret's  escape,  according  to  her 
plan  of  action*  excepting  the  abduction  of  her  children.  Albany's 
vigilance  was  not  to  be  diverted  from  them  ;  and  the  Lord  Cham- 
berlain, Home,  by  his  scheme  of  arson  and  "  other  ruffling,"  ren- 
dered himself  an  outlaw,  but  gained  naught  besides.  Home  es- 
caped to  Tantallan,  where  Margaret,  Angus,  and  he  remained 
till  September  23,  waiting  the  pleasure  of  Henry  VIII. 

The  fatigues  of  her  removal  had  a  severe  effect  on  the  health 
of  Q,ueen  Margaret ;  yet  the  failure  of  Lord  Home's  attempt 
obliged  her  to  flee  from  Tantallan  in  such  haste,  that  she  left  her 
jewel-box  and  wardrobe  there.  She  paused  on  the  verge  of 
England,  not  daring  to  enter  unless  invited  formally  by  her  brother ; " 
but  being  worse  every  moment,  she  took  sanctuary,  half-dead,  at 
Coldstream  Nunnery,  the  lady-prioress  of  which  was  aunt  to  her 
own  faithful  comptroller  of  the  household,  Robert,  or,  as  the 
Q/Ueen  always  terms  him  in  her  letters,  Robin  Barton.* 

At  Coldstream  Priory  the  Q,ueen  remained  long  enough  to 
receive  the  sympathizing  visits  of  old  Lady  Home,  mother  to  Lord 
Home,  Chamberlain  of  Scotland.  The  Q,ueen's  situation  occasion- 
ing her  great  suffering.  Lady  Home  came  to  give  her  comfort  and 
matronly  counsel  concerning  her  health.     But  directly  the  (dueen 

^  Lesley,  History  of  Scotland,  p.  103 ;  likewise  the  Queen's  dispatch  to 
Dacre  by  Robin  Kerr,  Calig.  B.  vi.  fol.  85. 

2  Lesley,  ibid,     Pinkerton.     Queen's  dispatch,  Cott.  MSS.  ibid. 

^  Lesley's  History  of  Scotland,  p.  104. 

*  State  Papers,  Magnus'  Dispatches,  vol.  iv.  Printed  history  declares 
that  she  came  from  Tantallan  to  Berwick  direct,  and  was  from  thence  sent 
to  Coldstream  by  the  Captain  of  Berwick.  Drummond  of  Hawthornden 
asserts  this  ;  but  it  is  doubtful. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  113 

went  forward  to  England,  an  agent  of  the  Duke  of  Albany,  a 
Frenchman,  called  M.  de  Barody,  in  order  to  strike  terror  into 
her  friends,  seized  poor  Lady  Home  in  a  furious  and  cruel  manner, 
set  her  upon  a  high-trotting  nag,  to  her  extreme  peril  and  pain, 
carried  her  to  the  Castle  of  Dunbar,  where  he  put  her  in  the 
strongest  prison-ward,  and  fed  her  on  bread  and  water ;  "  from 
which  durance,  if  she  be  not  speedily  released,  Glueen  Margaret," 
said  she,  "  verily  believed,  considering  her  feebleness  of  body,  that 
the  Duke  of  Albany's  Frenchman  meant  to  be  the  death  of  old 
Lady  Home." ' 

The  expected  invitation  of  Henry  VIIL  at  last  arrived,  which 
caused  Lord  Dacre  to  send  an  escort  to  Coldstream  for  Q,ueen 
Margaret,  for  the  purpose  of  conveying  her  as  far  as  Morpeth 
Castle,  his  family  residence,  where  she  would  have  from  his  lady 
proper  attention.  At  his  baronial  seat,  he  had  appointed  Sir 
Christopher  Gargrave,  or  Gervase,  to  await  her  with  "stuff," — 
meaning  all  sorts  of  conveniences  and  comforts,  which  her  con- 
siderate sister-in-law,  Q.ueen  Katharine,  had  sent  from  London, 
for  her  accommodation  and  her  expected  confinement,'  by  the 
said  Sir  Christopher,  a  knight  of  the  King's  bedchamber. 

The  welcome  message  of  Dacre  arrived  at  Coldstream  almost 
in  the  last  minute  that  Glueen  Margaret  could  be  moved.  So 
desperately  ill  was  she  taken  on  the  road,  that  her  convoy  were 
forced  to  stop  by  the  way,  and  hurry  her  into  Harbottle  or  Hard- 
battle  Castle,  one  of  the  grimmest  and  gauntest  stone-donjons  that 
frowned  on  the  English  frontier.  It  was  just  then  garrisoned  by 
Lord  Dacre  in  person,  who  had  commenced  the  fierce  war  on  the 
Borders  to  which  the  arrival  of  the  Duke  of  Albany  in  Scotland 
had  given  rise. 

The  portcullis  of  Harbottle  was  raised  to  admit  the  fainting 
dueen  of  Scotland  ;  but  not  one  Scot,  man  or  woman.  Lord  Dacre 
vowed,  should  enter  with  her.^  Here  was  a  terrible  situation  for 
Margaret. 

She  was  received  into  the  rugged  Border-fortress,  October  5, 
and,  after  remaining  in  mortal  agony  for  more  than  forty-eight 
hours,  gave  birth  to  a  daughter,  the   Lady  Margaret  Douglas, 

1  CoUonian  MS.  Caligula,  B.  ii.  p.  216.  Such  is  the  only  wrong,  much 
worth  reciting,  in  the  celebrated  paper  intituled,  "  Wrongs  of  the  Queen.'" 

2  Lord  Dacre's  letter,  Cott.  MS.  Calig.  B.  vi. 
*  Lesley,  History  of  Scotland,  p.  1U4. 


114  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

whose  name  is  familiar  to  every  one  on  the  pages  of  general  his- 
tory, as  the  immediate  ancestress  of  our  present  royal  family. 

There  were  the  royal  mother  and  daughter  without  female 
attendance,  in  a  Border  castle,  surrounded  by  a  wild  and  barren 
country,  which  was  scoured  on  all  sides  by  incensed  Scottish 
moss-troopers.  And  the  garrison  of  their  rugged  lodgment  was 
not  many  degrees  quieter  than  the  enemies  it  kept  at  bay. 

It  has  been  shown  that  Lord  Dacre  had  appointed  all  "  the 
stuff"  with  Sir  Christopher  Gargrave  to  wait  the  Q/Ueen's  arrival 
at  Morpeth,  because  small  chance  would  there  have  been  of  its 
safe  arrival  at  Harbottle  Castle,  with  such  troops  of  plunderers  to 
intercept  it  on  its  way.  Sir  Christopher  Gargrave,  however, 
brought  the  letters  from  Henry  VIII.  and  (olueen  Katharine  to 
(olueen  Margaret ;  but  she  was  too  ill  to  read  them  for  many 
days.  In  this  exigence,  Sir  Christopher  was  ordered  to  wait  her 
convalescence  at  Morpeth.^ 

The  Q,ueen  exhausted  her  small  remaining  strength  by  dicta- 
ting, on  the  third  day  after  the  birth  of  her  daughter,  a  letter  to 
her  kinsman  the  Duke  of  Albany  of  an  agitating  nature.  "  She 
had  been  forced,"  she  says,  "  for  fear  and  danger  of  her  life,  to 
depart  from  Scotland  to  the  realm  of  England."  The  letter  was 
written  after  the  baptism  of  the  infant — this  being  evident  by  the 
quaint  announcement  of  the  child's  existence  in  these  words, — 
"  So  it  is  that,  by  the  grace  of  Almighty  God,  I  am  now  delivered, 
and  have  a  christian  soul,'^  being  a  young  lady." 

But  Margaret  could  not  be  content  with  the  information  thus 
given  to  her  cousin-Regent.  She  concludes  her  epistle  with  an 
angry  exhortation,  in  God's  name,  that  he  should  suffer  her,  as 
his  honor,  and  right,  and  good  justice  require,  to  have  the  whole 
rule  and  governance  of  Scotland,  and  of  her  tender  children  as 
their  tutrix,  according  to  the  will  of  the  late  King  of  Scotland, 

1  Lord  Caere's  letter,  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  Printed  by  Sir  Henry 
Ellis,  vol.  i.  265. 

2  Cott.  MS.,  Caligula,  B.  vi.  Before  a  babe  was  baptized  in  ancient  times 
it  was  only  ranked  as  a  little  animal,  baptisms  raising  it  to  the  dignity  and 
privileges  of  a  human  being.  At  this  day,  if  you  ask  a  peasant  in  Bretagne, 
or  a  contadina  of  Italy,  after  the  welfare  of  her  new-born  infant,  if  it  is  be- 
fore baptism,  she  has  no  better  term  for  it  than  "  my  creature."  But  after 
baptism,  until  the  child  has  begun  to  sin,  it  is  viewed  with  great  respect  as  a 
stainless  Christian  soul.  Queeu  Margaret's  meaning  is  derived  from  such 
ideas. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  115 

her  spouse.  The  letter  is  not  signed  by  the  dueen,  her  state 
being  very  dangerous ;  and,  indeed,  the  task  of  signifying  her  in- 
tentions, and  entering  into  such  agitating  subjects,  must  have 
proved  nearly  fatal  to  her.     It  is  dated  October  10,  1515. 

Lord  Dacre  has  been  considered  remarkably  insolent  and 
neglectful  in  his  manner  of  announcing  the  birth  of  the  niece  of 
his  royal  master ;  but  the  situation  of  Lord  Dacre  has  not  been 
properly  considered.  He  was,  in  plain  reality,  much  in  the  case 
propounded,  by  way  of  comic  argument,  to  Dr.  Johnson, — "  If 
you  were  shut  up  in  a  castle  with  a  new-born  babe,  what  should 
you  do  with  it?"  And  Lord  Dacre,  although  not  exactly  alone 
with  the  royal  babe,  had  aggravations  of  the  case,  of  difficulty  far 
beyond  the  power  of  Boswell's  imagination  to  conceive,  being 
occupied  in  hourly  repelling  assault  and  siege — for  the  Scottish 
Borderers,  in  a  state  of  extreme  exasperation  at  the  flight  of  their 
Q/Ueen,  were  hovering  round  the  gray  pile  of  Harbottle,  ready  to 
demolish  all  goers  and  comers  from  its  gates,  and  make  spoil  or 
prey  of  all  supplies  brought  within  its  walls.  Moreover  tidings 
came,  ever  and  anon,  that  the  Regent  Albany,  at  the  head  of 
forty  thousand  Scotsmen,  was  in  full  march  to  beleaguer  the 
castle.  He  had  already  captured  all  Glueen  Margaret's  jewels 
and  fine  clothes,  at  her  deserted  castle  of  Tantallan. 

"Glad  would  we  have  been,"  proceeds  Dacre,  "to*  have 
advertised  your  Highness  of  the  Clueen's  safe  deliverance,  but  our 
causes  (state)  here  was  intricate,  with  so  much  cumber  and 
business,  that  we  could  not  ascertain  your  Highness  of  the  same 
till  this  time,  unless  we  should  have  sent  up  a  post  purposely  for 
the  said  Q^ueen's  deliverance,  which  we  thought  not  greatly 
requisite." 

Poor  Lord  Dacre  I  most  undeservedly  are  you  blamed,  while 
your  moderation  in  using  such  a  temperate  word  as  "  cumber," 
to  express  the  complication  of  troubles  which  had  suddenly 
descended  in  the  midst  of  Harbottle,  is  so  remarkable,  so  praise- 
worthy. Let  us  coolly  enumerate  all  that  the  hardy  warrior  had 
to  try  his  patience.  Assistance  of  the  most  delicate  nature  was 
indispensable,  and  no  such  requisites  were  at  hand.  A  helpless 
baby  was  wailing  for  nourishment — its  royal  mother  fainting 
between  life  and  death  within  the  walls  of  the  castle,  while 
inimical  Border-riders  were  ranging  without,  ready  to  pounce 
upon  and  demolish  every  needful  relay  that  approached  Harbottle 


116  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

of  doctors,  nurses,  caudles,  potions,  baby-clothes,  and  cradles. 
Then  there  was  a  royal  christening  performed  the  day  after  the 
unexpected  arrival  of  the  smallest  guest.  The  stout-hearted 
Lord  Warden  must  stand  excused  in  the  eyes  of  all  considerate 
readers  of  history,  if  he  omitted  some  of  the  ceremonious  expres- 
sions and  observations  suitable  to  the  rank  of  his  guests,  mother 
and  daughter,  when  the  difficulties  of  the  casualty  are  properly 
appreciated.  But  let  him  plead  for  himself  in  his  own  unsophis- 
ticated language. 

"  Forasmuch,"  continues  the  Lord  Warden,'  "  as  the  (dueen's 
lying  here  is  so  unecaeful,  and  costly,  by  reason  of  the  far  carriage 
of  everything,  we  be  minded  to  move  her  Grace  to  Morpeth,  as 
soon  as  she  conveniently  may,  after  her  (xrace  have  sought  the 
Church  for  her  thaidvsgiving.  It  may  like  your  Highness  to 
signify  your  mind  and  pleasure  unto  her  said  Grace,  how  ye 
think  ye  will  have  her  to  be  further  ordered,  that  we  may  motion 
and  move  her  accordingly.  Sir  Christopher  Gargrave  went  to 
Morpeth  immediately  on  the  (Queen's  deliverance,  and,  by  our 
advice,  hath  continued  there,  with  such  stuff  as  your  Grace  hath 
sent  to  the  Q.ueen,  your  suster,  till  Sunday  last  past,  which  day 
he  delivered  your  letter,  and  disclosed  your  credence,  greatly  to 
the  Q,ueen's  comfort.  And  forasmuch  as  the  Q,ueen  lieth  yet  in 
childbed,  and  sliall  (will)  keep  her  chamber  these  three  weeks 
at  least,  we  have  advised  the  said  Sir  Christopher  to  remain  at 
Morpeth  until  the  Clueen  is  coming  thither ;  and  then  her  Grace 
may  order  and  prepare  every  part  of  the  said  stuff  after  her 
pleasure,  and  as  to  her  Grace  seemeth  most  convenient.  And 
Almighty  God  have  you  our  most  dradde  sovereign  lord  in  his  most 
blessed  preservation.     At  Harebottell,  the  18th  day  of  October." 

About  the  same  time.  Lord  Dacre  permitted  a  congress  of  the 
Scottish  lords,  then  in  insurrection  against  the  Regent,  to  assemble 
at  Harbottle.  They  all  signed  a  covenant,  binding  themselves  to 
free  the  infant  King  of  Scots  and  his  brother  Alexander  from  the 
control  of  the  Duke  of  Albany  ;  at  the  same  time  wresting  the 
regnant  power  from  him,  and  bestowing  it  on  the  Q,ueen.  The 
signatures  of  her  husband,  Angus  the  second  prince  of  the  blood, 
Arran,  and  the  firebrand  of  mischief,  Lord  Home,  appear  to  this 
state  paper. '■^ 

1  Ellis.     Historical  Letters. 

2  Pinkerton,  vol.  ii.    The  deed  called  a  "  band"  is  dated  October  15, 1516. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  117 

No  wonder  Margaret's  life  was  in  danger,  when  proceedings  of 
such  agitating  tendency  were  transacted  around  her  sick-bed. 
Before  the  Glueen  was  sufficiently  recovered  to  leave  Harbottle, 
she  received  letters  from  the  Scottish  Regent  and  Council,  in 
which  her  flight  was  discussed,  and  her  return  entreated.  The 
conduct  of  Margaret  at  this  juncture  is  discussed  with  no  little 
sagacity  by  our  great  modern  historian  Tytler,  to  whose  patient 
research  and  manly  candor  the  world  is  indebted  for  justice  done 
to  that  calumniated  Scottish  prince,  the  Duke  of  Albany.  "  Not- 
withstanding the  infatuation  of  the  mother  of  his  sovereign, 
Albany  was  still  anxious  to  make  a  last  efibrt  for  a  compromise  : 
he  addressed  two  letters  to  her  on  the  same  day  (October  13), 
the  first  a  manifesto  from  the  Scottish  Council,^  commencing 
with  these  words, — '  Madame,  we  commend  our  hiwiyle  service 
to  your  Grace.'  The  other,"  continues  Mr.  Tytler,  "  was  a 
private  communication  written  with  his  own  hand.  The  terms 
of  both  were  moderate  and  even  indulgent.  Tlie  Council  im- 
plored her  to  awake  to  her  duty,  declared  their  aversion  to  all 
rigorous  measures,  besought  her  to  come  back  among  them,  and, 
as  inducements,  promised  that  she  should  enjoy  the  disposal  of  all 
benefices  within  her  dower-lands  ;  a  benefice  to  her  councilor, 
Gavin  Douglas  ;  and,  lastly,  the  guardianship  of  her  children,  if 
she  would  solemnly  promise  that  they  should  not  be  carried  out 
of  the  kingdom.  These  proposals  the  (dueen  imprudently  rejected, 
for  what  reason  does  not  clearly  appear.  Albany's  whole  conduct 
shows  them  to  have  been  sincere  ;  although  Margaret,  acting 
under  the  influence  of  Angus,  Home,  and  Arran,  had  been  taught 
to  regard  them  with  suspicion."  ^ 

Albany,  meantime,  wrote  to  Henry  VIII.  that  he  did  not  in 
the  least  wish  to  harm  or  annoy  the  Q,ueen  ;  he  repeated  to  the 
English  monarch  the  advantageous  terms  he  offered  her,  but 
without  avail. ^ 

The  removal  of  Margaret  and  her  little  infant  from  the  grim 
shelter  of  Harbottle  Castle  could  not  take  place  until  November. 
When  she   removed  to   Morpeth    Castle    (where   Lord  Dacre's 

1  Tytler's  Scotland,  vol.  v.  p.  294. 

2  Life  of  Bishop  Lesley,  Mackenzie's  Lives ;  confirmed  by  Cott.,  Calig.  ii. 
f.  113.     Wrojiga  of  the  Queen. 

^  Life  of  Lesley. 


118  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

family  usually  resided/  with  such  degree  of  comfort  as  the  war- 
like office  he  held  permitted),  she  immediately  suffered  a  long 
relapse  of  dangerous  illness,  greatly  aggravated  by  agitation  of 
mind,  arising  from  several  causes.  Lord  Home  was  making  des- 
ultory war  on  his  own  country,  committing  excessive  outrages 
on  the  Scottish  border.  He  had  caught  the  same  Lord  Lion  at 
Coldstream  with  whom  Glueen  Margaret's  party  had  commenced 
war  by  giving  him  that  remarkable  box-on-the-ear,  and  had  reft 
from  him  the  Regent's  letters  to  King  Henry  VIII. '^  Albany 
exchanged  for  his  captive  Lord  Lion  the  old  Lady  Home,  whose 
wrongs,  as  she  returned  from  waiting  on  Gtueen  Margaret  at  Cold- 
stream Nunnery,  have  been  related. 

In  the  midst  of  this  negotiation,  which  greatly  agitated  the 
sick  Glueen,  and  long  before  she  had  gained  strength  to  bear  the 
shock,  her  feelings  were  awakened  from  the  dullness  of  political 
treaties  to  all  the  agonies  of  an  absent  mother.  One  of  the  sons 
she  had  left  in  Scotland — one  of  those  tender  little  ones  for  whose 
possession  she  was  then  negotiating — fell  sick  of  some  infantine 
disorder,  and  expired  at  Stirling  Castle,  December  18,  1515.^ 

Margaret's  partisans  thus  spoke  of  his  death, — "  Alas  !  it  is 
openly  spoken  and  repeated,  that  the  Duke  of  Ross,  the  King's 
brother,  died  from  want  of  things  necessary  for  such  a  prince,  or 
else  was  poisoned."*  Another  says, — "  Prince  Alexander,  a  child 
beautiful  and  promising  to  admiration,  died  at  this  time,  or  was 
murdered."  Margaret's  grief  is  best  attested  by  the  long  illness 
which  succeeded  the  intelligence.  When  she  recovered,  rage 
found  utterance  beyond  grief ;  and  long  and  loudly  did  she  accuse 
Albany  of  poisoning  her  little  Alexander.  Yet  the  very  circum- 
stance of  the  young  King,  his  brother,  remaining  lively  and 
healthy,  is  a  sufficient  vindication  of  their  faithful  relative.  Much 
Margaret  exclaimed,  both  with  tongue  and  pen,  regarding  Albany's 
guilt ;  many  comparisons  she  drew  between  his  proceedings  and 
those  of  Richard  III.,  his  father's  friend  and  ally.  Yet  the  prin- 
ces of  York  vanished  together  ;  while  the  death  of  the  baby-prince 

1  Letters  of  Lord  Dacre  and  Lord  Scrope.  Queens  of  England,  Life  of 
Katharine  Parr. 

=*  Lesley,  p.  105. 

'  Life  of  Lesley.     Mackenzie's  Lives. 

*  Wrongs  done  to  the  Queen,  MS.  Cott.  Calig.  B.  ii.  173.  Drawn  up  by 
Gavin  Douglas. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  119 

of  Scotland  could  do  no  good  to  Albany,  as  James  V.  lived  and 
flourished. 

A  curious  circumstance  attended  the  sick  (Queen's  vehement 
accusations.  Years  afterward,  when  she  was  on  remarkably  loving 
terms  with  the  handsome  Regent,  all  her  partisans  renewed  the 
vehement  charge  of  murder  which  she  raised  at  Morpeth  against 
him,  without  perhaps  having  believed  it  herself — for  it  was  a 
political  outcry,  like  those  which  in  subsequent  centuries  were 
used  with  more  success  as  party- weapons  against  the  Anglo-Stuarts. 

A  sorrow  yet  harder  to  bear  likewise  beset  Margaret  at  Mor- 
peth. Her  husband,  tired  of  waiting  in  attendance  for  her  recov- 
ery, thought  fit  to  accept  the  favorable  terms  offered  him  by  the 
Regent,  and,  deserting  her,  decamped  into  Scotland.  The  time 
he  chose  for  this  escapade  offended  her  as  much  as  his  mode  of 
action,  insomuch  that  she  never  forgave  his  conduct.  It  was  on 
the  very  day  when  her  life  was  despaired  of,  at  Morpeth  (January 
17,  1515-16),  that  he  perpetrated  his  desertion  of  her  and  his 
infant,  signed  the  treaty  with  the  Regent,  and  went  back  to  Scot- 
land. The  poor  Q.ueen  was  suffering  under  the  crisis  of  a  typhus 
fever,  from  which  she  was  not  expected  to  recover.^ 

Her  friend  and  priest,  Dr.  Magnus,  ventured  to  offer  his  advice 
to  Henry  VIII.  that  he  should  "  write  comfortable  letters  to  his 
sister  and  send  for  her  ;  because  she  hath  daily  messengers  coming 
out  of  Scotland,  so  that  she  is  troubled  in  her  mind,  and  put  to 
study,  to  imagine  and  cast  what  answer  to  make  to  them." 
Magnus  was  evidently  her  amanuensis  in  answering  m.any  of 
these  dispatches,  for  he  adds,  "  We  have  taken  care  that  her 
letters  to  the  Scottish  Regent  be  so  worded,  that  no  good  under- 
standing shall  ensue  between  them."  Yet  he  is  evidently  in 
dread  lest  Margaret  should  soon  break  through  all  his  cunning 
diplomatic  tricks  of  writing,  and  send  to  the  Regent  different 
matter  ;  since  he  adds — 

"  Her  Grace  doth  not  make  us  privy  to  every  thing,  yet  she  as 
yet,  as  a  great  wise  woman,  resteth  on  this — namely,  that  she 
will  do  nothing  without  the  consent  of  your  Grace."  ^ 

These  representations  had  the  desired  effect,  especially  as  they 
were  backed  by  a  gentle,  and  at  that  time  an  all-powerful  pleader 
at  the  ear  of  Henry  VIII.,  being  his  excellent  Glueen,  Katharine 

1  Lesley,  p.  105.     Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  562.  *  Ibid. 


120  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

of  Arragon,  who  ever  showed  knid  and  sisterly  attention  to  Mar- 
garet Tudor. 

Under  her  influence,  Henry  VIII.  sent  a  frank  invitation  for  his 
sister  to  come  to  his  court  at  London  for  her  solace.  He  thought 
proper  to  request  her  husband  to  accompany  her.  Angus  thanked 
his  brother-in-law,  with  many  professions  of  humble  gratitude, 
and  promised  to  give  his  attendance  on  his  spouse  the  day  she  set 
forward  to  the  south. ^ 

The  first  fine  days  of  April  brought  to  Morpeth  Castle  a  gay 
and  noble  cavalcade,  sent  I'rom  London,  with  all  things  suitable 
for  the  accommodation  of  the  languisliing  and  destitute  Clueen  of 
Scotland.  One  of  Henry  VIII.'s  gentlemen  of  the  bed-chamher, 
William  Blackwell,  "  clerk  of  his  spicery,"  escorted  a  large  supply 
of  silver  vessels  for  Margaret's  use,  with  all  proper  officers  to  wait 
upon  her  on  her  journey.  "  Sir  Thomas  Parr,  Katharine  of  Arra- 
gon's  equerry,  arrived  with  the  present  from  his  Glueen  of  her 
favorite  white  pony  or  palfrey,  with  her  own  easy  pillion,  to  her 
sister  Margaret."^  And  to  the  care  of  Sir  Thomas  Parr,  the 
tender  and  humane  Katharine  especially  intrusted  the  care  of  her 
forlorn  sister-in-law's  person. 

Angus,  it  would  seem  (according  to  the  assertion  of  his  cotem- 
porary.  Hall  the  chronicler),  had  made  his  appearance  at  Mor- 
peth, for  the  purpose  of  escorting  his  consort  to  her  brother's 
court ;  but  some  distrust  subsequently  seized  on  his  fluctuating 
mind. 

"  When  dueen  Margaret  was  ready  to  depart,  she  asked  for 
her  husband.  But  he  had  not  kept  his  promise,  having  departed 
to  Scotland  ;  which  made  her  to  muse  on  this  sudden  absence. 
Howbeit,  the  English  lords  greatly  encouraged  her  to  keep  her 
own  promise  to  the  King  her  brother.  So,  when  she  was  some- 
what appeased,  she  set  forward  ;  and  in  every  town  she  was  well 
received."  ^ 

Notwithstanding  the  deep  mortification  Glueen  Margaret  had 
suffered  before  her  countrymen,  by  the  recreant  desertion  of  her 
spouse  at  the  commencement  of  her  journey,  yet  it  is  evident, 
from  the  tenor  of  the  following  letter,  that  her  spirits  felt  the 
pleasant  change  of  a  southern  progress,  from  languishing  on  a 
sick-bed  in  a  dismal  northern  donjon.     She  thus  wrote  to  Henry 

1  Hall  and  Hollinshed,  vol.  i.  p.  837.  =  Ibid. 

^  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  562. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  121 

VIII.    while    resting    at    Stony-Stratford,    on   her    London-ward 
journey. 

"  Dearest  Brother — i  As  heartily  as  I  can,  I  recommend  me  unto  you, 
and  let  you  wit  (know)  that  yesternight  I  came  hither,  so  being  comforted 
of  you  in  my  journey  in  many  and  sundry  wises  (ways)  that,  loving  be  to 
our  Lord  God,  I  am  in  right  good  heal  (health),  and  as  joyous  of  my  said 
journey  toward  you  as  any  woman  may  be  in  coming  to  her  brother,  as  I 
have  great  cause,  and  am  most  desirous  now  to  come  to  your  presence,  and 
to  have  sight  of  your  person,  in  whom,  next  to  God,  is  mine  only  trust  and 
confidence. 

"  Advertising  you,  dearest  brother,  (that)  I  have  received  this  day  a  letter 
from  my  son's  ambassadors  now  in  Loudon,  which  letter  I  send  you  herein 
inclosed,  and  have  addressed  unto  them  mine  answer  severally  in  two  sun- 
dry letters  (copy  whereof  I  also  send  unto  you),  that,  upon  notice  had  of  the 
same,  it  may  like  you  to  command  xvhether  (which)  of  the  said  letters  it 
seems  best  at  your  pleasure  shall  be  delivered. 

"  And  the  Holy  Trinity  have  you,  my  most  dearest  Brother,  in  tuition  and 
governance.     At  Stony- Stratford,  the  27  th  day  of  April. 

"  Your  loving  Suster, 

"  Margaret." 

Endorsed — "  Unto  my  dereste  broder  the  King's  Grace." 

Her  stages  to  London  were  very  short  and  easy,  for  it  was  the 
sixth  day  after  the  date  of  this  letter  that  the  recorder  of  London, 
Edward  Hall,  thus  notes  her  arrival — "  Tlie  Q,ueen  of  Scotland 
made  her  entry  into  London,  May  3,  1516,  riding  behind  Sir 
Thomas  Parr  on  a  white  palfrey.  She  was  richly  beseen  with  a 
great  company  of  lords  and  ladies."  She  came  first  to  Baynard's 
Castle,  and  from  thence  she  was  convoyed  by  water  to  Greenwich 
Palace,  where  she  was  received  right  joyously  by  the  King  her 
brother,  Glueen  Katharine,  and  the  French  Gtueen,  her  sister."^ 

One  of  the  first  questions  demanded  by  King  Henry  was, 
"  Where  is  my  Lord  of  Angus  ?"  He  was  perforce  informed  of 
the  peculiar  mode  in  which  his  brother-in-law  had  absented  him- 
self Henry  manifested  his  national  antipathies,  as  v/ell  as  his 
disdain  for  his  sister's  injuries,  by  the  exclamation — "Done  like 
aSootl''^* 

Many  brilliant  festivals  were   devised  on   account  of  dueen 

^  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  i.  fol.  20.  Edited  in  the  original  orthography  by 
Sir  H.  Ellis.     Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  129.     First  series. 

2  Hall's  Chronicle,  black  letter,  eighth  year  of  Henry  VIIL  Hollinshed, 
vol.  i.  p.  838. 

^  Ibid. ;  likewise  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  562. 

VOL.  I. — F 


122  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Margaret's  visit.  Among  others,  the  King  proclaimed  a  grand 
tournament  in  her  honor,  which  took  place  May  19  and  20. 
Henry  held  the  lists  with  his  favorite  and  brother-in-law,  Suffolk, 
very  gayly  attired ;  their  housings  and  tabards  were  embroidered 
with  golden  honeysuckles,  after  which  "  they  ran  volant  against 
all  comers,  very  pleasant  to  see  ;"  and  in  this  volant  course  Henry 
knocked  over,  man  and  steed,  Sir  William  Kingston,  a  tall  and 
burly  knight,  a  feat  which  mightily  gratified  all  the  loving  lieges 
then  looking  on.  And  when  night  approached,  Henry  and  his 
train  went  to  (dueen  Kiitharine's  chamber,  where  the  King  dis- 
armed ;  and  when  his  helmet  was  removed,  the  Glueen  of  Scots, 
and  her  sister  Mary,  as  well  as  his  own  Q.uecn  Katharine,  affected 
great  surprise  and  pleasure  at  finding  that  the  victorious  knight, 
who  had  gained  such  renown  by  the  overthrow  of  the  gigantic 
Kingston,  proved  to  be  the  King.  Such  was  ever  the  etiquette 
of  Henry's  tournaments.  The  royal  party  then  sat  down  to  a 
sumptuous  banquet,  prepared  in  honor  of  the  Q,ueen  of  Scots. ^ 

Every  individual  of  Margaret's  family  surrounded  her  at 
Greenwich,  for  the  purpose  of  welcoming  her,  by  keeping  the 
merry  month  of  May  as  one  continued  festival.  The  reunion  of 
the  Q/Ueens  of  the  house  of  Tudor  with  their  brother  and  sister- 
in-law,  has  been  commemorated  by  the  artist  who  illuminated  one 
of  Henry  VHI.'s  music-books,  still  preserved  in  the  Harleian  Col- 
lection. On  the  first  page  are  the  arms  of  England  ;  and  be- 
neath, the  badges  of  Henry  VIII.  and  Katharine  of  Arragon,  the 
rose  and  pomegranate,  richly  illuminated  ;  and  opposite  is  the 
daisy  or  Marguerite  and  the  marygold — one  flower  being  the 
badge  of  Margaret  Glueen  of  Scotland,  the  other,  of  her  sister 
Mary,  Glueen  Dowager  of  France,  then  recently  united  to  Charles 
Brandon,  Duke  of  Suffolk.     The  date  is  1516. 

During  the  whole  of  the  summer,  Margaret  kept  up,  by  means 
of  her  letters,  an  active  series  of  intrigues  against  the  Scottish 
Regent.  Although  much  incensed  with  her  husband,  she  insti- 
gated him,  by  her  correspondence,  to  aid  the  King,  her  brother, 
in  the  unw-orthy  task  of  wounding  and  betraying  Scotland  for 
the  promotion  of  their  private  ambition.  Lord  Dacre  refers  Car- 
dinal Wolsey  to  Queen  Margaret  for  information  regarding  a 
scheme  of  his  to  subjugate  the  Regent. 

^  HoUinshed,  black  letter,  folio,  vol.  i.  p.  838.  Hall,  eighth  year  of  Henry 
Vni.  f.  49. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  123 

She  betrayed  all  the  private  affairs  of  the  Scottish  government 
to  her  brother's  council,  while  Angus  privily  aided  the  unscru- 
pulous warfare  carried  on  by  the  general  of  the  English  boun- 
daries. Such  was  the  true  but  disgraceful  position  of  Q^ueen 
Margaret  and  her  spouse,  during  her  sojourn  in  England. 

The  intolerable  aggressions  carried  on  by  the  collusion  of  her 
husband  with  the  English  warden,  had  caused  the  Scottish  Re- 
gent to  talk  of  visiting  the  court  of  Henry  VIII.,  for  the  purpose 
of  civilly  remonstrating  on  the  mutual  evils  caused  by  such 
wicked  warfare.  The  heart  of  Margaret  leaped  with  joy  at  the 
very  idea  of  her  rival  in  empire  thus  putting  himself  in  the 
power  of  her  unscrupulous  brother.  But  she  fairly  owned  that 
the  news  was  too  good  to  be  true. 

"  My  Lord  Cardinal,"  ^  wrote  Margaret  to  Wolsey,  "  I  am  gladder  of 
the  tidings  that  the  King's  Grace  (Henry  VIII.)  telled  me  of  the  Duke  of 
Albany,  that  lie  will  come  hither,  which  I  beseech  God  may  be  true,  but  I 
dread  it  be  not. 

"  My  Lord,  I  think  (it)  right  long  till  I  speak  with  you  ;  for  next  to  the 
King's  Grace  my  most  trust  is  in  you,  and  you  may  do  me  most  good  of 
any.  And  I  pray  you,  my  Lord,  as  soon  as  any  body  comes  out  of  Scotland, 
that  you  will  send  me  word,  for  I  think  long  till  I  hear  tidings. 

"  No  more,  but  God  have  you  in  his  keeping. 

"  Your  friend, 

"Margaret  R." 

The  (^ueen  was  right  in  her  surmises.  The  Scottish  Regent 
repented  of  his  duixotic  proposal  of  visiting  the  court  of 
Henry  VIII.  However,  he  behaved  with  knightly  courtesy  re- 
garding that  species  of  property  belonging  to  Q,ueen  Margaret 
which  is  usually  dearest  to  a  lady's  heart.  The  master  of  Gray- 
stock  College  was  commissioned  by  Lord  Dacre  to  pass  over  the 
Border,  and,  accordhig  to  an  agreement  made  with  the  Scottish 
ambassadors,  to  receive,  in  the  presence  of  the  English  Herald 
Clarencieux,  ^  her  plate  and  jewels,  which  had  been  captured  at 
Tantallan  by  the  Regent's  forces.  Commissioners  likewise,  ac- 
companied by  Rothsay,  the  Duke  of  Albany's  herald,  were  to 
journey  to  Q,ueen  Margaret's  Scottish  dower  lands  and  gather  in 
her  rents  and  dues.     If  incessant  complaints  of  poverty,  and  even 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Vesp.  F.  iii.  fol.  36.     Edited  in    the  original  orthography  by 
Sir  H.  Ellis,  Hist.  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  128.     First  series,  August,  1616. 
^  Cott.  MS.,  B.  i.  f.  150.     Lord  Dacre's  letter  to  Wolsey. 


124  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

destitution,  which  form  a  species  of  begging  chorus  to  all  dueen 
Margaret's  numerous  epistles,  may  be  credited,  she  never  received 
any  of  her  Scottish  immunities.  But  her  word,  either  written 
or  spoken,  was  not  to  be  trusted,  as  the  merest  cursory  view  of 
her  letters  proves.  Whether  her  revenues  came  safely  over  the 
Border  can  not  be  ascertained  ;  but  that  her  fine  clothes  and 
jewels  certainly  did,  may  be  shown  by  an  inventory  of  them 
which  has  remained  for  centuries  in  the  Chapter  House,  West- 
minster.    It  is  addressed  to  herself 

"  Madame, — In  our  most  humble  manner  we  commend  our  service  to  your 
Grace.  Your  procurators,  factors,  and  commissioners  are  here,  and  have 
shown  to  our  good  lord,  my  Lord  Governor,  and  us,  your  letters  under  your 
seal  and  subscription  manual  for  the  receiving  of  your  goods  left  by  you  in 
this  realm,  and  also  for  raising  and  uptaking  of  the  rents  and  duties  of  your 
lands,  which  your  procurators,  our  said  Lord  Governor  and  we,  have  thank- 
fully received,  and  well  entreated,  and  shall  so  do  to  good  and  final  end  of 
all  your  matter,  according  to  the  tenor  of  the  recess  made  by  our  Sovereign 
Lord's  ambassadors  lately  in  England  ;  and  so  it  is  that  your  said  procurator 
has  'received  the  goods  underwritten  pertaining  to  your  Grace — that  is  to 
say,  a  cheffroun^  (cheveron),  with  a  chain  containing  57  links,  weighing  1% 
oz.  gross  weight;  one  cheveron  with  points  of  gold,  with  61  pearls  in  crara- 
mesy  (crimson)  velvet;  a  cheveron  set  with  gold,  of  21  rubies,  33  pearls; 
one  bird  of  gold  and  two  small  beleh  (bells),  with  heads  and  pendant  of 
gold ;  one  obligation  of  the  Laird  of  Bass,  containing  2  thousand  marks, 
made  to  the  Bishop  of  Caithnes  as  treasurer  for  the  time  to  your  Grace,  or 
to  any  others  his  factors,  subscribed  and  under  the  seals  of  the  Lord  Ber- 
wick, Sir  Patrick  Creichton  of  Cranstoun  Riddale,  and  William  Carmychell; 
one  collar  of  gold,  enameled  with  white  roses  and  red,  weighing  6  oz. ;  one 
collar  of  gold  weighing  6  oz. ;  one  piece  of  the  Laird  of  Bass'  chain,  contain- 
ing X  (10)  links,  weighing  42  oz.  ;  one  pair  of  sleeves  of  cloth  of  gold  lined 
with  crammesy  (crimson)  satin ;  one  other  pair  of  sleeves  of  cloth  of  gold  ; 
the  King  of  France's  great  diamond,  set  upon  a  red  hat  of  silk  ;  one  ruby 
balatt  upon  a  black  hat,  with  three  pearls ;  one  piece  of  yellow  satin  con- 
taining 2  fr.  ells ;  three  other  pieces  of  yellow  satin ;  one  piece  of  white 
taffeta  ;  one  piece  of  tawny  satin  ramanys ;  one  lining  of  gown-sleeves  of  red 
velvet;  one  packet  with  letters  closed  of  obligations  of  Kilmarnock  and 
others;  four  codbers ;  five  hats  of  silk;  one  partlet  of  gold-fret  set  upon 
crammesy  satin,  with  12  diamonds,  14  rubies,  25  pearls;  one  (partlet)  of 
cloth  of  gold ;  one  partlet  of  white  taffeta  Avith  three  pearls  ;  one  partlet  of 
taffeta  goldsmiths'  work ;  one  pair  of  sleeves  of  black  velvet ;  one  busk 
with  damask  gold,  with   ten  with  gold-wire ;  certain  ribbons  and  sewing 

^  The  cheveron  is  the  pointed  hood  like  that  worn  by  Elizabeth  of  York, 
and  afterward  modified  to  the  fashion  worn  by  Anne  Boleyn :  it  was  not 
worn  by  Mary  Queen  of  Scots. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  125 

silk ;  one  pair  of  beads  coral  gaudeit  (garnished),  with  6  pearls ;  one  pair 
of  beads  of  jasper  with  four  gaudes ;  one  pair  of  black  beads;  one  pair  of 
white  beads  ;  your  Grace's  testament ;  two  beasts  of  silver  (probably  Agnus 
Dei)  with  holy  wax  ;  one  hede,  or  hide,  of  sewed  work  ;  four  pieces  of  crisp 
(probably  crape) ;  one  pomander  (or  scent  ball),  with  silver  ;  one  stone  of 
crystal ;  one  cotter  of  bone  ;  four  books ;  one  tergatt  (perhaps  target  or 
shield)  of  gold  of  our  ladj. 

"  These  goods  following  were  delivered  of  before  to  your  Grace  in  Eng- 
land : — 

"One  cheveron  with  a  bird  of  gold,  with  *1\  pearls;  one  cheveron  with  a 
chain  of  gold  white  enameled ;  one  cheveron  with  a  point,  with  setts  of 
pearl;  one  cheveron  set  with  goldsmiths'  work,  with  35  pearls;  one  ciieve- 
ron  with  leaves  of  gold,  with  8  rubies  and  18  pearls;  one  new  chain  of  gold, 
containing  40  links  and  5  knoppis,  weighing  9  oz. ;  one  pair  of  sleeves 
of  gold-wire  ;  one  ruff  of  taffeta ;  one  partlet  of  black  velvet,  witli  gold- 
smitlis'  work,  set  with  30  pearls  ;  and  one  patlat  of  danias  gold. 

"  Your  furrings  (fur  trimmings)  in  Sterling,  because  of  the  Bishop  of 
Galloway's  being  in  the  north,  couth  (could)  not  be  gotten  at,  whilst  now  he 
is  coming,  and  shall  hastily  (quickly)  be  delivered  to  your  said  procurators. 

"  As  to  the  remainder  of  the  goods  asked  by  them,  we  understand  that 
they  are  the  King's  (James  V.),  and  pertain  to  his  grace,  and  that  you  may 
not  ask  them  at  this  time  by  reason  of  the  recess.  And  if  you  would  ask 
them  by  reason  of  executory,  whenever  it  please  your  grace  to  come  in 
Scotland  and  accept  the  office  of  executor,  with  the  charge  that  follows 
thereto  by  the  law — that  is  to  say,  acquitting  of  the  King's  debts,i  we  trust 
my  lord  governor  shall  be  well  contented  ;  and  we,  for  our  interest,  that  you 
have  all  oar  sovereign  lord  the  King's  goods,  whom  God  assoil !  except  the 
heirship  pertaining  to  our  sovereign  lord  now,  your  son.^ 

"  Madam,  in  all  things  your  Grace's  pleasure  charge  us,  you  shall  find  us 
ready  servitours,  as  knows  God,  whom  have  your  Excellency  In  keeping. 
"  Subscribed  by  command  and  deliverance  of  us  your  servitours,  the 
Lords  of  Council  of  Scotland,  and  in  our  presence  ;  and  given  under 
the  Great  Signet  at  Edinburgh,  the  29th  day  of  September. 

^  The  allusion  here  is  to  Queen  Margaret's  faithless  conduct  in  regard  to 
her  husband's  will.  *  She  took  all  his  assets,  and  left  his  debts  unpaid — con- 
duct which  proves  her  laxity  in  her  religion,  the  Roman  Catholics  being 
exceedingly  scrupulous  regarding  the  debts  of  a  defunct,  and  duties  of  an 
executor. 

'^  The  author  fully  agrees  with  Mr.  Devon  of  the  Chapter  House,  to  wliose 
friendship  the  publication  of  this  curious  MS.  is  owing.     He  says  : — 

"  The  modern  endorsements  being  generally  wrong,  I  have  my  doubts 
whether  it  is  Queen  Mary  or  Queen  Margaret,  sister  of  Henry  VIII.  I 
think,  from  the  handwriting,  it  is  the  latter ;  but  perhaps,  from  some  internal 
evidence,  you  can  determine.  Queen  Margaret,  after  her  second  marriage, 
came  to  England. 

"  However,  such  as  it  is  I  send  it,  and  only  hope  it  may  prove  interesting. 

"Fred.  Devon." 


126  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

The  duplicate  of  this  document  exists  in  the  pubUc  records  of 
Scotland/  entitled,  "  Inventory  of  the  jewels  and  baggis,"^  being 
in  the  coffer  taken  furth  at  Tantallan,  delivered  to  the  Com- 
missioners of  the  (Queen's  Grace,  now  being  in  England.  Septem- 
ber 25,  1516." 

Sir  Alexander  Jardin  had  taken  charge  of  Glueen  Margaret's 
jewel-coffer,  and  earnestly  demanded  her  receipt  to  his  inventory, 
which  is  the  Scottish  duplicate  of  that  now  published  from  the 
Chapter  House.  "  The  great  diamond  given  by  the  King  of 
France,  worth  8000  crowns  of  gold,  and  worn  on  a  red  hat," 
being  in  the  same  place  and  order  as  in  the  English  list.  But 
the  Scottish  inventory  has,  in  addition,  the  chapel  furniture  of  the 
Q,ueen,  delivered  to  her  priest  William  Husband,  one  of  her 
commissioners,  and  to  John  Sympson,  his  assistant,  who  give 
their  receipt  to  the  Scottish  Lords  of  the  Council,  by  the  hands 
of  the  Master  of  St.  Antony's,  "for  a  book  belonging  to  Queen 
Margaret,  a  vestment  of  cloth  of  gold,  a  vestment  of  green  velvet, 
an  altar  cloth  of  gold  tissue,  a  dessour  of  gold  cloth,  a  Iyer  of 
velvet;  a  cushion  of  velvet,  a  chalice,  and  two  cruets  of  silver, 
a  silver  sacring  bell,  and  two  other  books."  These  were  sent  the 
ensuing  month,  being  Oct.  11,  1516. 

So  completely  did  Q/Ueen  Margaret  withdraw  her  personal 
property  from  Scotland,  that  Robert  Spittell,  her  tailor  in  Edin- 
burgh, had  to  surrender  to  William  Husband,  her  priest,  on  Sun- 
day evening,  Oct.  12,  1516,  all  her  fur  trimmings,  being  two 
pair  of  ermine  cuffs,  three  tvide  sleeves,  and  half  a  lining  of 
ermine  for  a  night-gown,  seven  edges  of  ermine,  and  four  linings 
of  miniver. 

These  furrings  are  mentioned  in  the  Chapter  House  list  as  not 
attainable  until  the  return  of  the  Bishop  of  Caithness. 

A  relic  of  her  visit  to  England,  probably  the  same  coffer 
mentioned  in  the  Scotch  inventory  as  the  receptacle  of  her  bagues 
or  smaller  jewels,  has  been  preserved  by  the  descendants  of  Lord 
Forester,  as  a  gift  of  Mary  (iueen  of  Scots,  which  it  might  very 
well  be,  and  yet  have  pertained  originally  to  her  grandmother, 
whose  emblems  are  more  distinctively  expressed  by  the  ornaments. 

1  Edited  by  A.  Macdonald,  Esq.,  General  Register  House,  Edinburgh, 
who  has  kindly  favored  us  with  a  copy  of  his  inestimable  labors. 

^  Probably  the  French  word  bagues,  formerly  used  not  only  for  rings,  but 
for  all  kinds  of  pendants  and  trinkets,  p.  5,  ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  127 

The  fact  that  Clueen  Margaret's  personals  were  captured  at 
Tantallan,  as  our  documents  assert,  makes  it  appear  that  the 
casket  with  the  Douglas  bearings  came  from  that  stronghold, 
being  of  black  oak  and  silver,  beautifully  carved  all  over  with 
crowned  hearts  of  Douglas,  and  flower-Marguerites  surmounted 
with  regal  crowns.  The  initial  M.  frequently  occurs,  likewise 
crowned. 


CHAPTER    IV. 


SUMMARY. 

Margaret  established  in  Scotland  Yard  Palace — Munificence  of  her  brother — She  tries  to 
extort  more  cash — Her  letters  to  VVolsey — Ballet  danced  before  her  at  Greenwich 
Palace — She  proposes  to  return  to  Scotland — Hindered  by  Evil  Mayday — Her  letter  to 
Wolsey — She  intercedes  for  rebel  apprentices — Commences  her  journey — Arrives  at 
York — Her  remarkable  letter — She  is  Lord  Dacre's  guest — Meeis  her  husband  at  Ber- 
wick— Her  anger  at  his  conduct — Her  arrival  at  Edinburgh — Denied  access  to  her  son 
James  V. — Her  note  to  Lord  Dacre — Announces  to  VVolsey  her  intention  of  divorcing 
Angus  (1517) — Her  quarrel  with  Bishop  Gavin  Douglas — Her  endeavors  to  recall  the 
Regent  Albany — Her  complaints  of  poverty — Katharine  of  Arragon  sends  to  persuade 
her  from  divorce — Queen  Margaret's  brother  traverses  her  plea  at  Rome — Her  kind 
reception  of  the  Regent  on  his  return  to  Scotland — Flight  of  her  husband  over  the 
Border — Margaret's  reputation  attacked — Her  letter  of  vindication — Reports  of  her 
marriage  to  the  Regent  Albany — Her  rage  against  Gavin  Douglas— Return  of  her  husband 
to  Edinburgh — Margaret  pleads  for  his  life  with  the  Regent,  who  causes  his  abduction 
to  France — Happy  prospects  of  Queen  Margaret— Her  alarming  illness  with  small- 
pox—Her letters  to  Wolsey  and  Dacre— Loss  of  her  beauty. 

When  the  season  of  Advent  drew  Henry  VIII.  to  his  great 
Westmmster  Palace,  he  caused  to  be  prepared  for  his  sister 
Margaret  the  antique  residence  of  the  Kings  of  Scotland,  situated 
in  that  inclosure,  or  court,  below  Charing  Cross,  which  still 
bears  the  name  of  Scotland  Yard,  Here  she  dwelt  for  some  time, 
and  was  entertained  with  the  utmost  magnificence  by  her 
brother.^ 

Some  fragments  of  the  Scotch  palace  were  lately  to  be  seen 
from  the  water-side,  consisting  of  very  beautiful  bay  windows, 
which  bore  the  traditionary  designation  of  the  Glueen's  Treasury.'^ 
They  were  imbedded  in  buildings  of  more  recent  date.  The 
entrance  called  the  guard-room,  altered,  it  is  supposed,  as  a 
barrack  for  the  Scotch  guards  of  Q/Ueen  Anne,  remained  till  the 
middle  of  the  last  century,  bearing  marks  of  extreme  antiquity. 

Henry  YIII.,  as  can  be  proved  from  the  State  Papers,^  extorted 
an  oath  from  every  Scotch  traitor  whom  he  seduced  from  his  alle- 

1  Stowe's  London  ;  and  Pennant's  London  (improved),  p.  10*7. 

'^  Wilkinson's  Londona  Illustrata,  vol.  i. 

*  Lord  Dacre's  Dispatches  vol.  iv.  State  Papers. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  129 

giance,  acknowledging  hira  as  suzerain  of  Scotland,  in  revival  of 
Edward  I.'s  forged  claims.  It  is  therefore  likely  that  his  admis- 
sion of  his  sister  as  Q/Ueen  of  Scotland  in  this  long  disused  Scotch 
palace,  had  some  connection  with  his  meditated  infringements  on 
the  national  independence  of  the  northern  kingdom. 

As  for  Glueen  Margaret  herself,  her  thoughts  were  wholly  intent 
on  extracting  from  her  brother's  prime  minister  funds  for  her  ex- 
penses at  the  ensuing  Christmas.  She  knew  that  the  extravagant 
customs  of  the  English  court  would  require  a  great  outlay  for 
Christmas  and  New  Year's  gifts.  She  mightily  desired  to  give 
ostentatiously,  but,  at  the  same  time,  to  make  her  brother  be  at 
the  cost  of  her  donations. 

She  was  already  munificently  provided  for  at  his  expense,  as 
may  be  ascertained  by  the  commencement  of  her  epistle  to  Wol- 
sey  at  the  close  of  the  year. 

"  I  am  sorry  to  put  the  King  to  so  great  cost  and  charge  as  I 
do,"  writes  Margaret  to  Wolsey  ;*  "  howbeit  I  have  been  so  in 
times  past,  I  shall  not  be  so  in  times  to  come.  Nevertheless  I 
think  I  should  (ought  to)  be  like  his  siistei',  to  his  honor  and 
mine.  Now,  my  Lord,  you  know  Christmas-tide  is  near,  and 
part  of  things  I  tcill  (shall)  need  both  for  me  and  my  servants  ; 
and  I  trust  to  get  part  of  money  out  of  Scotland,  for  you  see  they 
owe  me  much,  and  say  they  will  cause  me  to  be  paid.  An'  they 
do  not,  I  have  as  great  wrong  as  is  possible  I  But  my  trust  is  that 
the  King,  my  brother,  will  see  me  have  reason  (right).  There- 
fore, I  pray  you,  my  Lord,  let  me  borrow  so  much  as  two  hundred 
pounds  English.  And  I  shall  give  you  a  writing  of  mine  own 
hand,  to  cause  my  Lord  Dacre  to  take  off  as  much  of  mine  of  the 
first  that  is  gotten.  Now  I  shall  trouble  you  for  no  more  money, 
for  I  trust  to  get  mine  own,  and  I  shall  do  the  best  I  can  with  it. 
I  pray  you  heartily,  my  Lord,  to  put  me  off'  no  longer,  for  the 
time  is  short."  For  the  purchase  of  Christmas  gifts  she  means, 
which  naturally  dates  her  dateless  dispatch  about  the  end  of  the 
year  1516. 

The  Glueen  was  urgent  for  an  answer  from  Wolsey,  because  in 
case  he  would  not,  or  could  not,  advance  the  sum  requested,  she 
meant  to  lose  no  time  in  soliciting  it  from  her  brother  in  person — 
"  for,"  says  she,  "  I  trust  his  Grace  will  do  as  much  for  me,  and 

^  Cott.  MS.  Calig.  B.  ii.  fol.  283. 


130  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

trust  me  for  a  greater  thing,  as  the  Lord  knoweth,  tvhom  keep 
you." 

Neither  Wolsey  nor  his  master  chose  to  make  the  advance. 
Margaret  again  wrote  an  importunate  letter,  as  follows — 

"My  Lord  Cardinal — I  commend  me  to  you,  and  I  would  fain  have 
spoken  with  you,  but  ye  were  gone  ere  I  could  come  to  you,  and  therefore 
I  must  write  to  you  my  mind. 

"  My  Lord,  I  beseech  you  to  show  your  good  mind  to  me  as  ye  have  done 
ever,  but  specially  now,  for  now  is  the  time. 

"  Me  Lord,  I  pray  you  heartily  to  get  me  some  money  against  New  Year 
Day,  for  ye  know  well  I  must  give  part  of  rewards  and  other  needful  things, 
both  for  the  King  my  brother's  honor  and  mine  ;  and  I  shaU  not  put  you  to 
no  more  trouble ;  but  I  beseech  you  heartily,  my  Lord,  that  I  may  have  it 
to-morrow  night  at  the  farthest,  for  else  I  shall  be  disappointed.  But  I  put 
my  whole  trust  in  you,  and  this  bearer  shall  wait  upon  you  for  your  answer, 
as  our  Lord  knoweth,  whom  keep  you. 

"  Margaret  R."  ^ 

Endorsed — "  Onto  my  Lord  Kardenall." 

The  royal  family  celebrated  the  Feast  of  Kings  at  Greenwich 
Palace,  where  a  grand  pageant  or  ballet  was  performed  in  honor 
of  Glueen  Margaret,  of  which  the  cotemporary  city-chroniclers 
have  left  a  picturesque  description. 

When  the  Glueen  of  Scotland  and  her  sister  Mary  were  seated 
in  state  with  their  brother  and  sister,  King  Henry  and  Glueen 
Katharine,  in  the  hall  at  Greenwich,  there  was  wheeled  in  a 
garden-artificial,  called  the  Garden  of  Esperance,  railed  in  with 
gold  pales,  a  tower  at  each  corner,  and  the  banks  set  with  "  flow- 
ers artificial,"  of  silk  and  gold,  the  leaves  cut  out  of  "  green  satin," 
so  that  they  seemed  "  very  leaves."  A  pillar  of  antique  work  in 
gold  rose  in  the  midst  of  the  garden  ;  set  with  pearls  and  precious 
stones,  beneath  a  gilded  arch,  or  rainbow,  stood  a  bush  of  red  and 
white  roses,  all  artificial,  worked  in  satin.  The  clustered  roses 
represented  the  royal  brother  and  his  two  sister  Q^ueens,  Margaret 
and  Mary  ;  near  it  was  "  a  plant  of  pomegranates  in  honor  of  the 
Glueen  Katharine,  being  her  device."  Twelve  knights  and  their 
lady-partners  sat  in  the  garden  and  in  its  towers ;  they  all  came 
down  and  danced  an  elegant  ballet  before  Q,ueen  Margaret  and 

^  Cott.  MS.  Calig.  B.  i.  fol.  202.  Edited  in  the  original  orthography  by 
Sir.  H  Ellis.     Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  130.     First  series. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  131 

the  rest  of  the  royal  company,  then  ascended  their  stage  again, 
when  the  pageant  was  wheeled  out  of  the  palace-hall.^ 

The  Christmas  of  1516-17,  with  all  its  festive  days,  came  and 
went,  but  Q,ueen  Margaret  received  neither  money  nor  goods 
from  Scotland.  At  last  the  jewels  and  finery,  according  to  the 
inventories,  were  safely  delivered,  as  she  acknowledges  in  a  letter 
belonging  to  the  spring  of  that  year.  The  goods  were  escorted 
by  her  herald  Ross,  but  the  northern  wardens  had  caught  him, 
and  detained  him  and  Glueen  Margaret's  caskets,  owing  to  infor- 
mality in  his  passport.  "  I  pray  you,  my  lord,"  wrote  Margaret^ 
to  Wolsey,  "  deliver  my  servant  Ross — the  herald  that  brought 
my  goods  from  the  Duke  (of  Albany)  and  the  lords  of  Scotland — 
for  the  sooner  he  is  sped  is  the  better  for  me,  an'  they  do  me 
reason,  as  they  say  they  will.  Wherefore  I  pray  you,  my  lord, 
hold  him  no  longer." 

The  dueen  had  been  staying  at  Windsor  with  her  royal  brother 
the  previous  Sunday,  where  she  had  taken  the  opportunity  of 
importuning  Wolsey  in  person  for  money. 

"  As  you  will  remember,"  she  says,  "  that  I  spoke  to  you  upon 
Sunday  to  borrow  a  part  of  money  of  the  King,  my  brother,  while 
(till)  I  may  get  my  own,  Vv^liich  I  shall  pay  to  you  again,  which 
is  no  honor  to  me  and  I  may  remedy  it.  And,  my  lord,  it  is  the 
first  request  I  ever  made  to  you  ;  an'  I  were  a  stranger  you  could 
do  no  less  to  me  ;  and  I  shall  think  me  ever  beholden  to  you  an' 
you  do  so  much  for  me  at  this  time.  I  am  loth  to  speak  to  the 
King  my  brother  in  it,  because  I  trust  you  will  do  it  for  me. 

"  No  more — but  God  keep  you  and  your  answer  with  this 
bearer." 

Her  thoughts  and  views,  in  the  beginning  of  1517,  were  drawn 
toward  the  possibility  of  regaining  sovereign  power  in  Scotland, 
by  the  expected  departure  of  the  Regent  Albany  to  France.  She 
was  likewise  agitated  and  augered  by  various  flying  reports 
of  the  proceedings  of  her  faithless  spouse  Angus. 

Albany's  wife  was  in  declining  health  at  the  close  of  the  year 
1516  ;  her  death  even  was  expected.  One  day  he  rose  up,  in 
full  parliament  assembled  at  the  Tolbooth,  and,  with  an  expres- 
sion of  agony  in  his  voice  and  countenance,  entreated  permission 
of  the  three  estates  to  return  to  France,  that  he  might  visit  his 

1  Hollinshed,  black  letter,  vol.  xi.  p.  339.     Hall,  black  letter,  fol.  49. 

2  Cott.  MSS. 


132  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

wife  and  console  her,  as  she  was  very  ill.  They  murmured  and 
complained,  as  if  their  last  hope  was  leaving  them,  but  finally 
gave  a  reluctant  consent.^  Yet  late  in  the  spring  he  was  still 
detained  in  Scotland.  He  did  not  like  the  navigation  of  its  stormy 
seas,  and  would  willingly  have  crossed  from  Dover.  Once,  when 
conversing  with  the  English  envoy — the  herald  Clarencieux — 
the  Regent  took  a  golden  reliquary  from  his  neck,  and  swore  by 
the  holy  fragments  within,  "  that  he  earnestly  desired  to  visit 
Henry  VIII.  and  England;"  and  added,  "  that  if  he  spoke  not 
truth,  he  abjured  his  part  of  Paradise,  and  devoted  his  soul  and 
body  to  the  infernal  demons."  To  his  familiar  friends  he  wished 
he  had  broken  "  all  his  legs  and  arms  before  he  had  stirred  a  step 
toward  Scotland  :"  ^  no  great  wonder,  when  the  incessant  troubles 
are  considered  which  the  perversity  of  the  leading  spirits  of  Scot- 
land prepared  for  him. 

Meantime,  the  return  of  Gtueen  Margaret  to  Scotland  was 
settled,  at  the  court  of  her  brother,  for  the  middle  of  May.  It 
appears,  by  her  letters,  that  she  passed  some  time  with  him  at 
Windsor  Castle,  from  whence  he  went  to  Richmond.  In  the 
midst  of  all  the  festivities  with  which  Henry  and  Margaret  were 
at  once  greeting  the  approaching  May  of  1517,  and  bidding  fare- 
well to  each  other,  that  terrible  insurrection  against  "  free  trade" 
broke  out  among  the  London  apprentices,  which  has  been  noted 
in  chronicle  by  the  emphatic  epithet  of  "  Evil  Mayday." 

While  the  whole  island  was  frighted  from  its  propriety  by  the 
rebellion  of  the  young  Londoners,  and  while  slaughters  and  strife 
expanded  on  all  sides  in  the  streets,  it  suited  Glueen  Margaret's 
convenience  to  go  to  town.  She  had  business  connected  with 
her  return  to  Scotland  at  her  residence  of  Baynard's  Castle,  a,nd 
thither  she  chose  to  go  despite  of  all  Wolsey's  remonstrances  that 
the  city  was  no  safe  place  to  abide  in.  Intrepidity  and  impa- 
tience were,  however,  two  leading  qualities  in  the  mind  of  the 
Tudor  (olueen  of  Scotland  ;  she  felt  no  fear  of  the  London  lads, 
and,  with  her  customary  importunity,  she  regularly  worried 
Wolsey  into  giving  her  admittance  ;  caring  nothing  for  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  flat-caps,  who  were  doing  their  best  to  make 
London  intolerable  to  all  non-combatants. 

1  Pinkerton,  vol.  i.  p.  169,  from  a  Letter  of  Clarencieux,  dated  November 
80,  1516. 
^  Ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  133 

The  following  letter  affords  a  specimen  of  her  importunity  : — 

[May,  1517.] 
"  My  Lord  Cardinal  ' — I  commend  me  to  you  as  heartily  as  I  can,  and 
wit  ye,  my  lord,  that  I  have  spoken  with  James-a-Borrow,  and  he  hath 
shown  to  me  that  ye  and  the  Lords  of  Council  would  not  that  I  should 
come  to  Bayner's  Castle  to-day, 

"  My  lord,  I  will  do  as  ye  think  best ;  but  I  pray  ye,  my  lord,  as  heartily 
as  I  can,  gif{if)  there  be  no  trouble  to-day,  to  let  me  come  to-morrow,  I 
trust  to  God  there  shall  be  no  like  trouble  but  that  I  may  come  to-morrow, 
for  an'  it  be  well  this  night,  I  trust  to  God  the  worst  be  past," 

The  trouble  Q,ueen  Margaret  here  mentions  clearly  alludes  to 
the  apprentice  insurrection,  according  to  her  idea  of  the  orthog- 
raphy and  pronunciation  of  her  native  language,  as  she  continues 
— "  an  it  be  veil  this  nyght,  I  trast  to  God  the  varst  be  past." 

"For,  my  lord,"  she  concludes,  "  1  have  a  sort  of  things  to  do  that  I  must 
needs  have  done,  that  will  be  needful  to  me.  I  pray,  my  lord,  let  me  have 
your  answer  by  this  bearer.     And  God  have  you  in  his  keeping. 

"  Yours, 

"Margaret  R." 
Endorsed — "  To  my  Lord  Cardnal." 

The  inconvenience  M^hich  the  angry  London  apprentices  had 
caused  to  Glueen  Margaret  did  not  prevent  her  from  pleading  for 
them  when  they  were  about  to  pay  the  penalty  of  their  rebellion. 
She  united  her  entreaties^  to  those  of  her  sister-queens,  Katharine 
of  Arragon  and  the  dueen-duchess  Mary  of  Suffolk,  all  three 
throwing  themselves  at  the  feet  of  Henry  VIII.,  and  begging  that 
further  vengeance  might  not  be  wreaked  on  them. 

It  is  probable  that  the  time  when  Margaret  joined  in  implor- 
ing the  mercy  of  her  brother  for  the  unfortunate  boys  was  on  the 
9th  May,  1517,  when  Henry  YIII.  had  arrived  at  Greenwich 
Palace,  with  all  his  family  around  him.  The  Lord  Mayor  and 
his  civic  train  came  from  London  by  water  that  day,  as  suppli- 
ants to  their  sovereign,  clad,  instead  of  their  gorgeous  red  robes, 
in  the  deepest  mourning,^ 

1  Cott.  MS ,  Calig.  B.  i.  folio  251,  printed  in  the  original  orthography,  by 
Sir  H.  Ellis. 

^  Ancient  Ballad  on  Evil  May-day  (Evans's  Collection),  supposed  to  be 
written  by  T,  Churchyard,  cotemporary  to  the  facts ;  Toone's  Chronology 
also  records  the  matter  of  fact, 

^  It  seems  likely  that  it  was  on  this  solemn  day  of  civic  penitentials  that 
the  intercession  was  made  by  the  three  sister-queens,  because  the  pardon 


134  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

"  The  Glueen  of  Scots,"  says  her  cotemporary  Hall,  "who  had 
been  a  whole  year  at  court  and  at  Baynard's  Castle  at  the  King's 
charge,  and  was  richly  appointed  of  all  things  meet  to  her  estate, 
both  jewels,  plate,  tapestry,  arras,  coin,  horses,  and  all  things  of 
her  brother's  gift  liberally,  departed  out  of  London  to  Scotland, 
May  18,  with  great  riches,  albeit  she  entered  England  in  great 
poverty.  All  her  charges,  both  going  and  returning,  were  made 
at  our  King's  cost."  Thus  the  "sort  of  things"  Margaret  had  to 
do  at  Baynard's  Castle  was  no  other  than,  securing  this  vast  store 
of  goods  she  had  to  convoy  back  to  Scotland. 

She  took  her  little  infant,  Margaret  Douglas,  back  to  the  north 
with  her.  This  babe,  always  an  object  of  interest  to  its  uncle 
Henry  YHL,  afterward  found  a  permanent  home  at  his  court. 

Clueen  Margaret's  intended  entry  into  Scotland  was  regulated 
by  the  movements  of  the  departing  Regent,  who  could  not  quit 
Scotland  till  summer,  and  then,  as  late  as  the  end  of  May,  he  re- 
ceived a  refusal  from  Wolsey  to  permit  his  land  passage  through 
England.  The  dueen,  in  the  mean  time,  had  advanced  as  far 
as  York,  from  whence  she  wrote  a  remarkable  letter  to  her  brother, 
dated  June  3.  As  Wolsey  had  entered  into  a  long  negotiation 
concerning  the  restitution  of  the  income  of  her  jointure  by  the 
Scotch  government,  Margaret  found  it  needful  to  come  to  con- 
fession respecting  the  property  she  had  received  from  James  IV. 

"Your  Grace  knoweth,"  she  writes  to  Henry  VHI.,^  "it  is 
concluded  between  your  council  and  Scotland  that  I  shall  have 
all  that  I  have  right  to,  pertaining  to  me,  with  one  clause  in  it — 
that  is,  I  giving  again  ivhat  I  have  pertaining  to  imj  son.'' 

"  The  King  my  husband,"  she  continues,  "  (whose  soul  God 
pardon  I)  ere  he  went  to  the  field,  gave  me  a  letter  of  his  hand, 
commanding  to  be  delivered  to  me  18,000  crowns  of  weight  that 
the  French  King  (Louis  XII.)  did  send,  which  was  without  the 
Council  of  Scotland's  consent.  Also  they  (the  Council)  may 
claim  any  other  things  that  I  have  which  the  King  my  husband 
gave  me  which  were  wrong." 

Thus  Q,ueen  Margaret  refused  to  own  or  give  any  account  of 

was  publicly  granted  by  Henry  VIII.  sitting  in  judgment  on  the  King's 
Bench  in  Westminster  Hall,  May  19,  1517,  the  day  after  Margaret's  depart- 
ure to  the  north.     Hall's  Chronicle. 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  There  are  several  alterations  in  the  paging  of 
these  MS 3.,  in  pencil,  so  that  it  is  impossible  to  make  a  definite  quotation. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  135 

the  treasure  James  IV.  confided  to  her,  exceptmg  the  French 
subsidy,  which  she  could  not  have  obtained  but  by  means  of  the 
Treasurer,  who  of  course  produced  to  the  Council  her  husband's 
order.     All  that  was  unaccounted  for  she  grasped  as  gifts. 

"  And  I  spent  most  part  of  it  ere  I  came  to  your  Grace,"  she 
continues  ;  "  for  I  was  not  answered  of  my  living,  since  the  field 
(Flodden),  to  hold  my  house  with.  Therefore  I  beseech  your 
Grace  to  command  my  Lord  Dacre  to  see  a  sure  way  for  me  and 
Master  Magnus  ere  I  go  in." 

That  is,  Lord  Dacre  was,  by  the  terror  of  his  master's  power, 
to  overawe  the  Scottish  Council  into  permitting  her  to  retain  the 
national  treasure  without  giving  any  account  of  it,  or  making  up 
the  deficiency  from  her  own  funds ;  and,  above  all,  that  she  was 
not  to  be  molested  concerning  the  defalcation.  After  all,  she 
owns  that  Albany  was  the  only  person  she  feared  in  the  matter, 
adding  scornfully — "  Now  the  Duke  goeth  away,  I  set  not  much 
by  the  remnant  that  is  behind,  for  I  know  them  and  their  con- 
ditions. The  fear  they  have  of  your  Grace  will  make  them  glad 
to  please  me.'"  In  her  postscript,  Margaret  mentions  to  Henry 
YIII.  that  the  pursuivant  of  the  Eegent  Albany  had  asked, 
in  his  name,  to  request  of  her  brother  that  the  peace  between 
Scotland  and  England  might  be  continued  beyond  St.  Andrew's 
Day,  Nov.  30.  "  Sir,"  she  adds  to  her  brother,  "  I  trust  you  do 
remember  that  I  spake  to  your  Grace,  when  I  went  to  Windsor 
this  last  time,  that  it  (the  peace)  should  not  be  continued  long 
without  my  desire — for  causes — But  do  as  your  Grace  thinks 
best  for  me,  so  that  I  may  know  what  you  do  (or  intend)  before 
the  Duke  (is  aware  of  it),  whether  this  peace  be  continued,  so 
that  I  may  have  the  thanks  of  Scotland  I" 

How  well  she  deserved  them,  the  general  tendency  of  her  cor- 
respondence best  shows.  She  had,  on  her  return  northward, 
traversed  the  same  track  through  which  the  reader  formerly  ac- 
companied her  magnificent  bridal  progress.  But  this  time  it  was 
noted  that  she  traveled  with  a  train  comparatively  small  and 
mean,  forming  a  great  contrast  to  her  splendor  when  progressing 
to  meet  her  first  husband.  Again  she  was  the  guest  of  Lord 
Dacre  at  Morpeth,^  where  she  waited  until  the  Regent  Albany 
was  clear  of  Scotland.     He  sailed  from  thence  June  7,  1517. 

1  Her  letter,  Cott.  Vesp.  xiii.  MS.  It  is  useless  to  quote  the  folio,  as  the 
Catalogue  does  not  agree  with  the  MSS. 


136  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

At  Berwick,  dueen  Margaret  was  met  by  her  husband  Angus. 
Englishmen,  observes  Hall  the  chronicler,  little  regarded  him  ;  ^ 
and  as  to  the  Q,ueen,  his  spouse,  she  gave  him  any  thing  but  a 
kind  reception,  having  been  informed  that  he  had  carried  ofi'  a 
lady,  and  kept  her  in  Dougiasdale.  After  giving  way  to  the 
expression  of  transports  of  jealousy,^  she  declared  herself  implaca- 
ble, and  pretty  well  kept  her  word,  although,  for  the  present,  a 
sullen  pacification  took  place,  for  she  did  not  then  discover  the 
whole  of  her  wrongs. 

Margaret,  on  her  arrival  at  Edinburgh,  demanded  access  to 
her  son  ;  but  he  was  immediately  transported  to  Craigraillar, 
under  the  supposition  that  she  had  imported  from  England  the 
infection  of  the  plague  of  the  sweating  sickness.  But  by  the 
courtesy  of  Lord  Erskine,  his  personal  guardian,  the  Glueen  had 
access  to  him  at  Craigmillar.  Her  frequent  visits  aroused  sus- 
picion that  she  meant  to  renew  her  attempts  of  stealing  him  to 
England ;  therefore  he  was  removed  in  haste  to  the  Castle  of 
Edinburgh,  and  her  access  to  him  was  denied.^ 

Directly  after  her  arrival  she  wrote  a  hasty  note  to  Lord 
Dacre  ;  she  has  drawn  out  with  her  pen  an  inclosed  corner, 
evidently  meant  to  be  addressed  to  her  late  hostess  at  Morpeth, 
the  Lady  Dacre  : — 

"  My  good  Lady, — I  pray  you  remembre  upon  me  in  your  gud 
prayers,  your  lovenge  frende,* 

"  Margaret  the 
q,wene  of  scottox." 

To  Wolsey  she  sent  the  news  of  her  arrival  and  treatment  in 
Scotland  in  the  following  epistle  : — 

"  My  Lord  Cardinal. — In  my  most  hartly  wise  I  recommend  me  to  you, 
and  would  be  glad  to  hear  from  you.  Pleaseth  you  to  ivit  (know)  that  I  am 
come  to  Edinburgh,  and  hath  been  very  well  received,  saving  the  sight  of 
my  son  the  King,  which  I  think  right  strange  ;  and  this  {she  means  the 
bearer  of  her  letter)  will  show  you  my  mind,  to  whom  I  pray  you  give 
credence, 

"  My  good  Lord,  next  the  King,  my  brother,  my  most  special  trust  is  in 

^  Hall  and  Hollinshed,  vol.  ii.  p.  844. 

2  Life  of  Lesley,  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  564,  565;  likewise  Lord 
Herbert's  Life  of  Henry  VIII. 

8  Ibid.  -»  Cott.  Vesp.,  xiii. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  137 

you,  and  ye  may  do  me  the  most  good ;  and  gif  (if)  so  be  this  realm  keep 
not  to  the  King  my  brother,  and  you,  their  promise,  I  must  needs  call  for 
help  to  his  Grace  and  you.  For  I  trust  to  rule  me  so  that  the  King  and  you 
shall  be  content,  for  I  will  do  nothing  but  I  will  axe  counsel  at  my  Lord 
Dakers  (Dacres) ;  and  I  pray  you,  my  Lord,  command  him  that  he  send 
often  to  see  how  I  do  and  am  entreated.  But  and  ever  (if)  the  Duke  (Albany) 
come  into  Scotland  again,  here  is  no  biding  for  me,  and  that  this  bearer  can 
show  you.  No  more,  but  God  have  you  in  his  keeping.  Written  the  26lh 
day  of  June  with  my  hand. 

"  Yours, 

"  Margaret  R."  ^ 

Mightily  discontented  was  Margaret  with  her  prospects  in 
Scotland — much  she  protests,  in  a  subsequent  letter  to  her  brother, 
"  that  she  will  never  abide  therein,"  and  remarkable  is  the  ill- 
will  she  displays  to  her  lord  and  master  Angus.  "If  it  please 
your  Grace  to  wit  (learn),"  she  says,  "  how  the  King  your 
nephew  does,  he  is  in  good  health,  thanks  be  to  God.  As  touch- 
ing myself,  an'  it  please  your  Grace  to  luit  how  I  am  done  to 
since  my  departing  from  you,  it  hath  been  very  evil."  ^ 

But,  to  remunerate  herself,  she  instigates  her  brother  to  make 
a  seizure  of  the  goods  of  the  poor  unoffending  merchants  of  ships 
trading  to  England,  that,  by  means  of  such  piracy,  the  income 
which  she  had  justly  forfeited  might  be  made  up  to  her  I 

"  Your  Grace  knows  that  you  may  of  reason  cause  the  shijos  of 
Scotland  to  be  taken,  and  the  goods  in  them,  when  they  (the 
Lords  of  Council)  fail  to  me  that  I  he  not  satisfied  ;  which  I 
have  suflered  too  long,  considering  that  your  Grace  hath  forborne 
so  long  to  do  any  evil,  and  I  am  naught  the  better.  Dearest 
brother  the  King,  I  trust  your  Grace  will  not  let  me  be  overborne, 
and  I  wot  well  ye  will  never  get  any  good  of  Scotland  by  fair- 
ness. Nor  I  shall  never,  with  my  will,  abide  here  with  them  that 
I  know  loves  me  not,  which  is  proven  daily  ;  howbeit,  do  to  me 
as  your  Grace  will,  for  all  my  weal  is  in  your  hands."  ^ 

Her  resolution,  expressed  in  the  latter  part  of  this  paragraph,  is 
the  first  intimation  of  a  struggle,  which  consumed  the  prime  of 
her  life  in  unavailing  endeavors  to  part  from  her  husband  Angus. 
"  Also,  please  you  to  wit  that  I  am  sore  troubled  with  my  lord  of 
Angus,  since  my  last  coming  into  Scotland,  and  every  day  more 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Cal.  B.  i.  It  is  one  of  Mr.  Nethercliff 's  specimens  among  his 
ingenious  and  valuable  fac-similes. 

2  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  i.  3  Ibid. 


138  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

and  more,  so  that  we  have  not  been  together  this  half  year. 
Please  your  Grace,"  continues  Margaret,  opening  still  further  the 
detail  of  her  spouse's  iniquities,  "to  remember,  that  atony  coming 
noiv  into  Scotland,  my  Lord  Dacre  and  master  Magnus  made  a 
writing  betwixt  me  and  my  Lord  Angus  for  the  security  of  me, 
that  he  might  not  have  it  in  his  power  to  put  away  nothing  of 
my  co7ijunct  feofment  (marriage  jointure)  without  my  will, 
which  he  hath  not  kept." 

Thus  she  reveals  that  Lord  Dacre  and  her  friend  Magnus, 
before  she  entered  Scotland,  during  her  stay  at  Morpeth,  had 
tried  to  secure  her  jointure,  by  inducing  Angus  to  settle  all  upon 
her.  Angus  promised  all  they  required,  and  did  just  according 
to  his  own  pleasure.  How  he  observed  his  agreement,  the  Glueen 
herself  shall  say. 

"  The  Bishop  of  Dunkeld,  his  father's  brother,  and  others  of  his 
kinsmen,  caused  the  Earl  of  Angus  to  deal  right  sharply  with  me, 
to  cause  him  to  break  this  bond  he  made  to  me,  which  I  would 
not  do." 

Here  is  her  first  quarrel  with  her  friend  G-avin  Douglas,  the 
very  same  person  for  whom  she  had  incensed  and  outraged  the 
Church  of  Scotland,  to  force  him  by  the  mere  dictum  of  her 
capricious  will  into  the  Primacy.  The  dueen  complains  that, 
at  the  instigation  of  Gavin,  her  spouse,  Angus,  went  and  received 
all  her  Ettrick  Forest  rents,  established  himself  at  her  house  of 
the  Newwark,^  and  altogether  kept  her  from  giving  her  tenants 
their  discharge  or  receipts.  "My  forest  of  Ettrick,"  she  says, 
"  ought  to  bring  me  in  4000  marks  yearly,  and  I  shall  never  get 
a  penny." 

"  Much  more  evil,"  she  continues,  "  did  Angus  perpetrate,  of 
which  she  would  cause  a  servant  of  hers  to  report  to  her  brother, 
as  it  was  too  long  to  write."  Then  comes  her  resolution  to 
divorce  her  recreant  spouse,  and  kindly  favor  her  brother  with  her 
company  in  England  for  the  time  to  come.  Of  that,  Henry 
VIIL  and  Lord  Dacre,  if  not  Wolsey,  had  had  already  enough. 
However,  she  says — 

"  And  I  am  so  minded  that,  an'  I  may  by  law  of  God,  and  to 
my  honor,  to  part  with  him,  for  I  ivit  (know)  well  he  loves  me 
not,  as    he    showeth    to    me    daily ;  wherefore,  I  beseech    your 

^  She  held  courts  at  her  Castle  of  Newark,  in  Ettrick,  in  the  reign  of  her 
son  James  V. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  139 

Grace,  when  it  comes  to  that  point,  (that  of  divorce),  as  I  trust  it 
shall,  you  will  be  a  kind  prince  to  me,  for  I  shall  never  marry 
but  where  you  bid  me,  nor  never  part  from  your  Grace,  for  I 
will  never,  with  my  will,  abide  here  in  Scotland,  And  so  send 
me  your  pleasure,  and  what  your  Grace  will  do  for  me,  for  all 
my  hope  and  trust  is  in  your  Grace.  I  durst  not  send  by  land  to 
your  Grace  for  such  causes,  as  I  shall  cause  you  to  understand  ; 
and  I  beseech  your  Grace  to  write  me  your  mind  by  this  bearer, 
and  God  preserve  you.  At  Edinburgh,  your  humble  cyster^ 
Margaret." 

The  year  passed  away  most  unquietly  to  the  Q,ueen,  and  the 
whole  country  of  Scotland.  Albany  had  left  the  young  King  in 
the  care  of  a  commission  of  the  Scottish  lords,  the  chiefs  of  which 
were  Angus  and  Arran.  Very  frequently,  battles  Avere  fought 
between  the  turbulent  nobles  for  precedence  and  power.  Angus, 
who  lived  with  the  Q.ueen  uneasily,  began  to  show  abilities  and 
courage  which  his  first  outset  in  life  had  not  promised  ;  but  his 
valor  and  astuteness  were  only  exerted  to  the  furtherance  of  his 
selfish  interests  and  passions. 

The  young  lady  he  had  abducted,  and  carried  with  him 
wherever  he  went,  was  the  Lady  Janet  Stuart,  daughter  of  Lord 
Traquair,  to  whom  he  had  been  troth-plight  before  Glueen  Mar- 
garet wedded  him,  and  who  had  made  him  the  father  of  a 
daughter  (rival  to  the  little  Lady  Margaret  Douglas),  called  the 
Lady  Jeane  Douglas,^  whose  subsequent  marriage  with  Lord 
Ruthven  proved  the  origin  of  long  troubles  to  Mary  Glueen  of 
Scots,  and  her  son  James  VL 

Q.ueen  Margaret,  incensed  at  seeing  Angus  possess  himself  of 
her  Ettrick  Forest  income,  while  his  heart  and  company  were 
given  to  another  wife,  pleaded  this  pre-contract  as  a  reason  for 
divorce.  But,  from  the  moment  the  Q/Ueen  discovered  the  nefa- 
rious conduct  of  Angus,  she  set  at  work  every  means  possible  to 
bring  the  Regent  Albany  home  to  Scotland  again,  as  he  was  the 
only  person  likely  to  control  or  punish  her  contumacious  spouse. 
The  battles  and  skirmishes  perpetually  fought  between  Angus  and 
Arran  made  Scotland  a  most  miserable  country.  It  is  useless  to 
load  biographical  narrative  with  the  perplexing  detail  of  this  ig- 
noble scuffling  to  be  uppermost. 

Q,ueen  Margaret,  meantime,  pressed  forward  her  divorce  from 
1  Hume  of  Godscroft,  p.  249. 


140  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Angus,  a  proceeding  which  greatly  scandahzed  her  royal  sister-in- 
law,  Katharme  of  Arragon,  who,  in  the  summer  of  1519,  sent 
one  of  her  ecclesiastics,  Father  Bonaventura,  to  condole  with  her 
on  her  matrimonial  misfortunes,  and  advise  her  to  bear  them 
without  making  them  public.  Margaret  was  then  at  Perth, 
October  11,  1519.  Father  Bonaventura  being  too  gentle  to  deal 
with  Margaret's  determination  to  dismiss  her  husband,  her  brother 
himself  dispatched  Henry  Chadworth,  a  very  stern  friar  from  his 
dueen's  convent  at  Greenwich,  a  great  orator  among  that  rigid 
order  of  Observants,  to  reprove  Q.ueen  Margaret  with  vehemence  ; 
"  to  tell  her  tliat  her  ideas  of  divorce  were  wicked  delusions,  in- 
spired by  the  father  of  evil,  whose  malice  alone  cuuld  prompt  her 
to  blame  her  husband.  Lord  Angus,  or  unnaturally  to  stigmatize 
the  fair  daughter  she  had  by  him."  ^  Chadworth  amply  fulfilled 
his  commission,  and  thundered  terrible  denunciations  against  the 
heinousness  of  Margaret's  intended  divorce.  All  these  lectures 
and  contradictions  from  her  brother  and  his  queen  but  hardened 
Glueen  Margaret's  wishes  into  obstinate  determinations.  She 
concealed  her  proceedings  from  the  court  of  England,  and  made 
complaints  to  her  dear  kinsman  Albany,  imploring  him  to  return 
and  suppress  her  husband's  cruelty  to  herself  and  to  the  people  of 
Scotland. 

Her  correspondence,  chiefly  carried  on  with  England  through 
Lord  Dacre,  became  lamentable  in  the  extreme,  concerning  her 
miserable  destitution.  "I  stand  in  a  sore  case,"  she  says  in  one 
of  her  dispatches  from  Stirling  Castle  (without  date,  but  probably 
written  in  the  same  year),  "  an'  I  get  not  the  King  my  brother's 
help,  and  my  Lord  Cardinal's  ;  for  such  jewels  as  his  Grace  gave 
me,  at  my  departing,  I  must  put  away  for  money.  I  have  dis- 
charged all  my  servants,  because  I  had  naught  to  give  them, 
scarcely  finding  meat  for  the  day  to  sustain  myself,  and  for  that 
I  is  indebted  to  my  faithful  comptroller,  Robin  Barton,  for  very 
sustenance.^  Lord  Dacre,  intercede  that  I  may  return  to  live  in 
England,  for  the  Lords  of  the  Scottish  privy-council  prohibit  me 
from  seeing  my  son.-"  They  declared,  on  their  parts,  that  they 
had  full  conviction  she  meant  to  abduct  him  into  England.  "  I 
had  liever  be  dead  than  live  out  my  life  in  Scotland,"  Margaret 
continues.  "  Let  no  peace  be  kept  between  the  realms  till  I  is 
done  justice."     Yet  she  had  so  inextricably  entangled  her  afiairs, 

1  Pinkerton,  vol.  ii.  jj.  114.  »  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  i. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  141 

that  it  was  almost  beyond  the  power  of  any  real  friend  to  set 
them  right. 

"  His  Grace  promised  me,"  she  continues,  "  at  my  departing, 
that  Scotland  should  never  have  peace  from  England  without  I 
were  well  done  by,  which  is  not  done,  ibr  I  was  never  so  evil ; 
wherefore  I  beseech  his  Grace,  Henry  VIII.,  to  remedy  it  hastily 
(speedily),  for  all  my  hope  and  comfort  is  in  him.  And  wit  you, 
my  Lord,  this  realm  stood  never  as  it  doth  now,  nor  never  like  to 
have  so  much  evil  rule  in  it,  for  every  Lord  prideth  who  may  be 
the  greatest  party,  and  have  the  most  friends  ;  and  they  think  to 
get  the  King,  my  son,  into  their  hands,  and  then  they  will  rule 
all  as  they  will,  for  there  is  many  against  the  Chancellor  (Bishop 
James  Beton),  and  think  to  put  him  down  from  his  authority,  and 
I  am  the  most  beholden  to  him  of  any  here.  And  thus  I  see  no 
good  for  my  son  nor  me." 

As  to  Cardinal  Wolsey,  she  earnestly  reminds  him  of  his  prom- 
ises which  he  made  to  her  when  she  was  in  his  house  at  her  de- 
parting out  of  England,  that  "  he  would  stand  good  lord  and  friend 
to  her,  for  she  is  now  at  a  sore  point,  being  so  much  mistrusted, 
that  she  dares  scarcely  tarry  long  enough  to  write  that  very  let- 
ter." She  concludes  by  entreating  Lord  Dacre  to  purchase  of  her 
"two  cups  of  gold  which  Henry  VIII.  gave  her  when  he  parted 
from  her,  likewise  some  gold  chains,  as  he  had  better  have  them 
than  any  one  else,  for  they  must  be  sold,  and  she  is  ashamed  to 
let  her  want  of  money  be  public."  ^ 

Soon  after  the  receipt  of  this  lamentable  statement,  Lord  Dacre 
discovered  the  series  of  interested  intrigues  she  had  set  at  work 
for  the  return  of  the  Regent  Albany.  He  taxed  her  fiercely  with 
her  treachery  to  the  English  party  ;  to  which  charge  she  replied 
in  her  usual  style,  the  burden  of  her  strain  being,  as  of  old,  the 
urgency  of  taking  care  of  self — which  purpose  she  declares  with- 
out the  slightest  idea  of  the  natural  effect  it  must  have  on  the 
mind  of  the  stern  and  uncompromising  warrior  to  whom  she 
addressed  her  missives. 

The  flatterers  of  Henry  VIII.  bestowed  many  praises  on  his 
sister  Margaret's  great  abilities,  certainly  without  proper  founda- 
tion. For  with  the  most  earnest  desires  for  self-gratification,  she 
was  not  clever  enough  to  devise  her  dishonest  schemes  success- 
fully, and  was  therefore  always  in  difficulties.  Let  not  any  one 
'  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  i. 


142  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

suppose  that  the  analysis  of  a  character  of  this  species  is  an  un- 
profitable study.  The  world  abounds  in  Margaret  Tudors,  who 
pursue  the  vain  idolatry  of  self- worship,  though  not  quite  as  shame- 
lessly, for  it  is  not  conventional  to  avow  their  purposes  as  broadly 
and  openly  as  the  Glueen  of  Scotland  does  to  Lord  Dacre  in  the 
following  letter  : ' — 

"  Mr  Lord  Dacre — I  commend  me  heartily  to  you.  And  wit  ye  that  I 
have  received  your  writing  from  John  Sympson,  your  servant,  and  understand 
it  at  length.  And  where  (as)  ye  remember  me  in  your  writing  of  my  labor 
and  desire  made  unto  the  King's  Grace  my  brother,  and  to  my  Lord  Cardi- 
nal (Wolsey),  and  their  council,  upon  sundry  considerations  to  them  de- 
clared, and  specially  for  the  weal  and  surety  of  the  King  my  son,  and  for 
the  recovering  of  my  authority  in  this  realm,  and  tutrixship  of  the  King  my 
son,  according  to  the  testament  of  the  King  my  husband — and  that  the  Duke 
of  Albany,  then  being  in  Scotland,  should  be  removed  into  France  again, 
and  not  return  to  Scotland. 

"  My  Lord,  all  I  did  there  I  thought  for  the  best,  as  the  King  s  Grace,  my 
brother  and  his  council  knows ;  for  I  trusted  that  the  Lords  of  this  realm 
and  I  should  have  agreed  well,  and  I  to  have  brooked  peaceably  mine  own, 
as  they  are  bound  to  do  by  their  hands  and  seals,  and  then  they  might  not 
have  no  cause  to  excuse  themselves  to  the  Duke.  Howbeit,  I  am  not  the 
hetterer,  for  I  was  never  so  evil  answered  nor  obeyed  oY  my  lands  as  I  am 
since  my  last  coming  into  Scotland,  as  I  have  oftentimes  written  to  the  King 
my  brother,  and  to  my  Lord  Cardinal  and  you." 

James  IV. 's  wise  statistical  improvements  in  his  farms  on  the 
forest  of  Ettrick  were  eagerly  appropriated  by  Margaret's  second 
spouse,  the  young  Earl  of  Angus,  who,  as  she  has  shown,  detained 
that  district  as  his  portion  of  the  prey,  and  kept  it  both  from  Gtueen 
and  State  whensoever  his  power  was  triumphant  in  Scotland. 
There  is  some  reason  to  suppose  that  Q,ueen  Margaret,  in  her 
first  fondness,  had  made  over  the  life-interest  of  her  Ettrick-dower 
to  Angus,  for  it  will  be  seen  that,  after  all  the  mutations  of  his 
fortune,  he  died  in  possession  of  it.^  When  Margaret  meditated 
divorce,  and  marriage  to  a  new  husband,  like  the  child  who  cries 
for  the  cake  devoured,  she  clamored  to  have  her  rich  Ettrick  lands 
again.  These  explanations  Glueen  Margaret  knew  as  well,  or 
better,  than  her  biographer,  yet  she  proceeds  as  if  she  had  been 

^  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  xi.  fol.  195.  Ellis's  Historical  Letters,  vol.  ii.  p.  276, 
second  series. 

^  Letter  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots  from  France,  Register  Office,  Edinburgh. 
Edited  by  Labanoff. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  143 

impoverished  by  wrong  of  others,  and  not  by  her  own  ungoverned 
passions  and  extravagance. 

'•  Howbeit,"  she  proceeds,  "  I  gat  no  remedy ;  and  I  did  show  you,  my 
Lord,  in  my  writings  which  ye  have,  that  an'  I  get  not  shortly  help,  that  I 
must  do  what  the  Duke  of  Albany  and  the  Lords  of  this  reabn  Avould  have 
me  do,  for  I  have  none  here  that  will  help  me  of  my  complaint  nor  do  me 
justice  ;  so  that  I  may  not  live  to  my  honor.  As  my  living  is  here,  I  maun 
(must)  cast  me  to  please  this  reahn." 

Thus  her  influence  was,  as  usual,  put  up  at  a  price  for  the  best 
bidder,  past  benefactions  being  ever  blank  in  Margaret's  compu- 
tation. When  she  had  received  all  she  could  obtain  from  her 
brother  and  England,  she  then  stretched  out  her  rapacious  hands 
to  Albany  and  France  ;  and  this  course  she  pursued  until,  like 
many  other  greedy  persons,  she  lost  her  market,  owing  to  the 
utter  contempt  into  which  she  sank  in  the  estimation  of  all  parties. 
Margaret  was  the  example  and  forerunner  of  the  hideous  corrup- 
tion and  demoralization  which  occasioned  intense  suffering  both 
to  her  native  and  adopted  country  for  the  ensuing  two  centuries. 
Very  curious  as  psychological  study  is  the  historical  tracking  of 
these  dishonorable  traits  in  the  eflect  they  had  on  the  people  at 
large.  The  rapacity,  falsehood,  and  contempt  of  the  marriage- 
vow  shown  by  the  (olueen  of  Scotland,  and  the  King  of  England 
her  brother,  being  imitated  by  their  favorites  and  nobles,  grad- 
ually spread  downward,  and  corrupted  the  classes  nearest  to  their 
influence.  Like  others  of  their  race,  the  crimes  and  vices  of  Mar- 
garet and  Henry  have  either  been  hushed  into  forgetfulness,  or 
basely  praised  by  those  whose  interest  it  was  to  follow  their  ex- 
ample, while  those  who  were  innocent  have  paid  the  penalty 
which  the  reaction  of  public  feeling  ever  exacts,  and  have,  withal, 
been  loaded  with  calumny. 

"  Alway,  my  Lord,"  continues  Margaret,  "  when  ye  writ  to  me  to  know 
if  I  have  sent  any  writing  to  the  King  of  France,  for  the  furthering  of  the 
Duke  of  Albany's  coming  hito  Scotland,  my  Lord,  there  was  a  letter  loritten 
into  France  to  the  King  of  France  from  me,  by  the  special  desire  of  the 
Duke  of  Albany  and  the  Lords,  which  I  might  not  deny  (them),  for  they 
said  it  was  for  the  veel  (weal)  of  the  King  my  son,  and  his  realm." 

Thus  Margaret  took  bribes  from  her  brother  to  keep  Albany 
away,  and  wrote,  at  the  request  of  the  Scottish  council,  to  France 
to  bring  him  back.     She  does  not  name  her  gains  in  this  respec- 


144  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

table  commerce,  but  her  ensuing  sentence  of  extenuation  proves 
that  she  studied  no  motive  but  her  pecuniary  mterest,  or  "  liveli- 
hood," as  she  often  calls  her  income. 

"  My  Lord,  I  pray  you  remember,  that  an'  ye  were  in  another  realm, 
where  ye  shoukl  hve  your  hfe,  ye  would  do  what  ye  might  to  please  them, 
so  that  they  should  not  have  any  mistrust  of  you  !  And  so  must  I.  For 
an'  I  should  refuse  to  have  written  when  I  was  desired,  the  Duke  of  Albany 
and  the  Lords  would  have  thought  I  had  stopped  his  coming,  and  there- 
through I  might  get  evil.  And  thus  I  trust,  my  Lord,  that  the  King's 
Grace,  my  brother,  and  my  Lord  Cardinal  (Wolsey),  will  remember  as 
(how)  I  stand  in  this  realm.  And  in  the  last  writing  I  had  from  the  King, 
my  brother,  he  commanded  me  I  should  do  nothing  tliat  the  Lords  might 
have  any  occasion  to  complain  of  me,  which  I  trust  I  have  done." 

But  such  were  cautions  regarding  her  personal  conduct,  which 
Henry  knew  was  not  highly  in  public  esteem  in  Scotland ;  yet  he 
did  not  mean  his  exhortations  for  moral  correctness  to  be  turned 
against  him  in  political  matters.  All  was  one  to  Margaret,  for 
the  use  she  made  of  language  was  merely  to  deceive  and  equivo- 
cate. Then  follows  a  clause,  which  is  seldom  absent  from  her 
letters,  relative  to  pawning  or  selling  her  goods  and  chattels. 

Between  Scotch  idioms  and  bad  English,  her  next  sentence  is 
not  very  perspicuously  worded,  yet  her  meaning  is  sufficiently 
plain. 

"  An'  suppose  it  be  evil  to  me,  it  is  dishonor  to  the  King's  Grace,  my 
brother,  as  well  as  to  me.  But  the  unkindness  that  I  find  doth  me  more 
evil  nor  any  thing  in  the  varld,  for  I  see  well  what  point  that  ever  it  stand 
me  on,  I  will  get  no  help  but  fair  words. 

"My  Lord,  ye  must  pardon  that  I  write  so  sharp,  for  it  touches  me  near; 
and  God  kype  you.     At  Edinburgh  i\\e  foioentTjn  day  of  July. 

"  Your  friend, 

"  Margaret  R."  ^ 

The  Regent  Albany  landed  at  Garvloch,  in  Lennox,  November 
19,  1521,  after  five  years'  absence;  he  proceeded  by  easy  jour- 
neys to  Linlithgow,  where  Q,ueen  Margaret  received  him  with 
the  utmost  distinction  and  respect.  They  made  a  state-entry 
into  Edinburgh  together  soon  after,  with  every  appearance  of 
friendship,  and  even   of  affection.     The  Glueen  ordered  the  keys 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  ii.  fol.  195.  Sir  H.  Ellis's  Historical  Letters.  Third 
series,  vol.  i.  p.  287. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  145 

of  her  fortress  of  Edinburgh  Castle  to  be  reverentially  delivered 
to  the  Regent,  as  the  possessor  of  sovereign  power. 

The  English  resident  at  Rome  transmitted  to  his  master  the 
following  intelUgence — "  The  (dueen  of  Scots  sueth  her  husband, 
the  Earl  of  Anguish,  in  cause  of  divorce  and  dissolution  of  mat- 
rimony. Her  case  is  committed  to  the  root  (query,  rota?)  and 
the  Duke  of  Albany  promotes  the  same."  ^  It  is  a  mystery  what 
Albany's  intentions  could  be  in  this  matter.  In  all  probability, 
he  was  aware  that  Margaret  and  Angus  were  bound  too  tightly 
by  the  church  to  be  separated  while  his  regency  was  likely  to 
last ;  and,  meantime,  he  would  fool  Margaret  to  the  top  of  her 
bent,  in  order  to  induce  peace  and  quiet  in  Scotland  till  the 
young  monarch  came  of  age.  Henry  VIII.  was  as  earnest  in 
hindering  his  sister's  divorce  from  Angus  as  he  was  anxious,  sub- 
sequently, to  effect  his  own  from  Katharine  of  Arragon.  Wolsey, 
after  announcing  to  his  monarch  the  respectable  intelligence 
"  that  he  had  taken  measures  to  encourage  all  Scotch  rebels,  so 
that  they  may  continue  divisions  and  seditions,"  adds  this  clause 
for  the  discomfiture  of  Q,ueen  Margaret — "  I  have  not  only  writ- 
ten to  your  orator  in  the  court  of  Rome,  to  impeach  and  hinder 
the  suit  made  in  that  court  for  a  divorce  between  her  and  her 
husband,  the  Earl  of  Angus,  but  also  caused  the  Pope's  orator 
here  to  write  in  the  most  effectual  manner  to  his  holiness  for 
stopping  the  same,  by  means  whereof  the  said  divorce  shall  not 
proceed,  when  the  Pope  shall  be  informed  that  this  divorce  is  to 
be  procured  only  for  marriage,  to  be  made  between  Q.ueen  Mar- 
garet and  the  Duke  of  Albany,  whereby  the  destruction  of  the 
young  King  of  Scots  shall  ensue,"  ' 

One  question  is  utterly  unexplained  in  all  these  agitations  and 
intrigues  to  counteract  the  wedlock  of  Albany  and  Margaret — 
what  was  to  become  of  the  Regent's  own  Princess  ?  Agnes  de 
la  Tour  Auvergne,  without  the  encumbrance  of  armies  and  regal 
pomp,  was  one  of  the  richest  potentates  in  Europe.  But  it 
seems  that  the  example  of  the  divorce  of  Louis  XII.  and  Jane 
of  France  had  already  injured  public  morality,  and  formed  the 
precedent  for  the  conduct  of  Henry  VIII. 

The   Earl  of  Angus  still  remained  in  Edinburgh,  contending 

^  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  ii.  foL  195.  Sir  H.  Ellis's  Historical  Letters.  Third 
series,  vol.  i.  p.  287.      Letter  to  Wolsey,  October,  1521. 

2  State  Papers,  published  by  Commissioners,  1830.     Part  i.  p.  91. 
VOL.  I. — G 


146  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

against  dueen  Margaret's  intention  of  divorcing  him.  He  was 
considered  the  head  of  Henry  VHI.'s  party.  Directly,  however, 
the  Regent  of  ^Scotland  made  his  appearance  with  a  strong 
French  force  of  men,  money,  and  ammunition,  the  leaders  of  the 
English  faction  decamped.  Angus  and  his  brother  George  took 
refuge  on  the  Borders  ;  they  were  reduced  low  enough  to  lurk 
at  the  Kirk  of  Steyle,  in  something  like  sanctuary.  From  thence, 
after  certain  conferences  with  Lord  Dacre,  Angus  empowered  his 
uncle  Gavin  (Ibrmerly  made,  by  Glueen  Margaret,  Bishop  of 
Dunkeld)  to  go  forward  to  the  court  of  his  dear  brother-in-law, 
Henry  VIII. ,  for  the  purpose  of  negotiating  with  him  ;  and  withal, 
to  tell  tales  of  tlueen  Margaret's  evil  doings  against  England, 
and  of  her  attachment  to  the  Regent. 

The  discussions  of  Q.ueen  Margaret's  spouse  with  Lord  Dacre 
brought  to  light  some  remarkable  imputations  on  her  character. 
Lord  Dacre  thus  wrote  to  "Wolsey^ — 

"  There  is  marvelous  great  intelligence  between  Glueen  Mar- 
garet and  the  Duke  of  Albany,  as  well  all  the  day  as  mich  of 
the  night.  In  manner,  they  care  not  who  knows  it.  And  if  I 
durst  say  it — for  iear  of  displeasure  of  my  Sovereign — they  are 
over  tender  ;  whereof,  if  your  Grace  examine  the  Bishop  of 
Dunkeld  (Gavin  Douglas)  of  his  conscience,  I  trust  he  will  show 
the  truth."  ^  Lord  Dacre  likewise  comments  that  "  Q.ueen  Mar- 
garet had  ofiered  Angus  her  forest  of  Ettrick,  worth  2000  Scot- 
tish marks  yearly,  to  consent  to  her  divorce."  Dacre,  neverthe- 
less, pronounced  "her  conduct  with  Albany  scandalous."^  Nor 
did  he  confine  the  expression  of  his  ill  opinion  to  Wolsey  and  his 
royal  master.  Margaret  herself  received  a  letter  from  him,  in- 
veighing against  her  partial  familiarity  with  the  once  hated 
Regent.  His  dispatches  contain,  in  fact,  worse  accusations,  since 
she  might  plead  political  reasons  for  her  intimacy  with  the  Re- 
gent ;  but  he  repeats  the  jealous  recriminations  of  Angus,  who 
affected  a  great  degree  of  displeasure  at  the  Q^ueen's  proceedings 
with  Sir  James  Hamilton,  a  notorious  character  for  profligacy. 
Sir  James  is  called  in  history  "  the  bastard  of  Arran  ;"  and  pos- 
sessed more  pow6r  than  is  generally  allotted  to  persons  of  illegiti- 
mate descent. 

Angus  had  very  early  manifested  personal  jealousy  of  Sir  James 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Cal.  B.  vi.  205.     Dec.  1521. 

'  Ibid.  3,  Pinkerton. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  147 

Hamilton,  who,  notwithstanding  a  superabundant  degree  of 
ferocity,  was  not  endowed  with  that  high  courage  which  was 
often  the  only  respectable  quality  of  knight-adventurers  like  him- 
self The  young  King  of  Scotland  noticed,  with  early  shrewdness, 
that  Sir  James  Hamilton  could  never  encounter  the  fierce  looks 
of  the  Q,ueen's  husband,  Lord  Angus,  without  ti^rning  away  ;  or 
in  the  royal  boy's  words,  "  showing  the  back  seams  of  his  hose." 

All  these  circumstances  invest  with  no  little  interest  the 
correspondence  between  Q,ueen  Margaret  and  Lord  Dacre,  in 
December,  1521,  wherein  he  charges  her  roundly  with  riding 
away  from  Edinburgh  Castle  to  her  palace  of  Linlithgow,  and 
in  the  dead  of  night,  accompanied  only  by  Sir  James  Hamilton. 

It  is  but  right  to  peruse  Margaret's  answer  to  these  terrible 
charges.  Although  she  did  not  read  Dacre's  gross  accusation  of 
her  to  Wolsey,  yet  she  perceived,  by  what  she  calls  his  "  sharp 
writing,"  that  he  was  inimical.  Her  letters  are  frequently  too 
wordy  and  tedious  for  quotation,  beyond  her  matter  of  fact,  or 
that  which  she  chooses  to  indite  as  matter  of  fact ;  but  this 
letter,^  written  with  an  evident  feeling  of  injured  honor,  bears 
the  impress  -of  more  dignity  of  mind  than  Margaret  ever  mani- 
fested on  any  other  occasion. 

"  My  Lord  Dacre — I  commend  me  heartily  to  ye,  and  wit  ye  that  I  have 
received  your  Avritings,  and  ouderstands  them  at  length,  which  are  right 
sharp,  specially  at  the  ending  of  them ;  wherein,  in  part,  I  have  shown  my 
mind  to  this  bearer,  because  it  were  long  to  write,  but,  in  part,  1  wiU  make 
you  answer  in  this  my  writing. 

"  My  Lord  Dacre,  as  to  my  Lord  Angus,  glf  he  had  desired  my  company 
or  my  love,  he  would  have  shown  himself  more  kindly  than  he  has  done. 
For  now,  of  late,  when  I  came  to  Edinburgh  to  him,  he  took  my  houses 
without  my  consent,  and  withheld  my  living  from  me ;  which  he  should  not 
do  of  reason." 

Margaret  complains  that  on  this  account  she  had  incurred 
trouble,  and  the  displeasure  of  all  Scotland  ;  and  yet  had  had 
neither  help  from  her  brother  "nor  no  love  of  my  Lord  Angus." 
She  adds  shrewdly  to  Dacre — "  Methinks,  my  lord,  you  ought 
not  to  deem  this  reasonable  if  you  be  my  friend,  as  I  trust  you  be." 

As  to  the  reproaches  regarding  her  partiality  for  the  handsome 
Regent,  she  retorts  that  "  his  assistance  was  somewhat  more  than 

^  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  i.  232.  Pinkerton  has  printed  it  at  length  in  his 
Appendix. 


148  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

fair  words,"  since  solid  benefits  had  been  bestowed  on  her  by  him, 
both  of  his  own  money  g-iven  to  her,  and  the  readiest  money 
belonging  to  the  King,  her  son  ;  and  if  it  had  not  been  for  this 
friendly  supply,  she  must  have  sold  or  pawned  her  jewels  and 
cupboard  of  plate. 

After  deliberately  answering,  paragraph  by  paragraph,  the 
business  departments  of  Caere's  epistle,  (dueen  Margaret  thus 
meets  his  offensive  charges  : — 

"  My  Lord  Dacre,  you  should  not  give  so  lightly  credit  to  evil  tales  of  me 
as  you  do,  when  you  know  the  truth ;  suppose  you  bear  great  favor  to  my 
lord  of  Angus,  as  I  see  you  do.  Howbeit,  time  was  I  have  seen  it  far  other- 
wise. I  must  bear  me  to  please  tliis  realm  (seeing  I  am  living  here),  and 
have  few  friends  but  through  my  good  beliavior. 

"Also  you  say  I  came  out  of  Edinburgh  in  the  night:  but  that  was  not 
so ;  for  all  the  Lords  (of  the  Council)  knew  of  my  coming  away,  and  I  saw 
no  good  to  abide  there.  And  where  you  say  I  am  ruled  by  advice  that  will 
never  do  me  good  nor  honor,  my  lord,  I  did  never  dishonor  myself  nor  them 
that  I  am  come  of.  Methinks  you  should  not  give  credence  to  that  of  me, 
both  for  the  King's  Grace  my  brother's  sake,  and  the  King  my  father 
(whose  soul  God  pardon) ;  and  I  have  done  better  for  your  cause  than  my 
lord  of  Angus  hath  done,  or  any  of  his.  But  I  know  well,  when  the  Bishop 
of  Dunkeld  (Gavin  Douglas)  hath  been  with  you  lately,  which  hath  caused 
you  to  write  so  sharply. 

"  As  to  Sir  James  Hamilton,  I  could  not  hinder  him  from  riding  on  the 
way ;  but  he  convoyed  (escorted)  me  not.  It  was  the  other  lords  that  brought 
me  from  Edinburgh  to  Linlithgow,  as  is  known.  My  lord,  you  also  write 
sharply  to  me  in  your  last  article,  saying  that  I  do  dishonor  to  myself  in 
abiding  away  from  my  Lord  Angus,  and  that  I  follow  them  that  will  be  my 
destruction,  and  can  not  stand  in  the  pleasure  of  the  King's  Grace,  my  brother, 
and  that  I  may  not  look  for  any  favor  from  the  King  my  brother's  hand  • 
for  it  is  thought  that  I  am  sore  abused  under  color  of  fair  promises,  which 
will  bring  me  to  the  displeasure  of  God,  and  my  dishonor  and  undoing  at 
length.  My  lord,  these  is  sore  words,  and  unkindly,  if  this  be  the  King  my 
brother's  mind — I  being  his  sister.  Tliat  evil  and  false  folk  make  such  re- 
port of  me,  and  credit  so  lightly  to  be  given  to  the  same,  is  right  heavy 
to  me ;  and  I  may  think  it  strange  that  my  lord  of  Angus  can  make  the 
King,  my  brother,  so  displeased  at  me  without  any  fault.  Wherefore  it  is 
no  marvel  supposing  others  be  unkind,  considering  that  I  took  my  lord  of 
Angus  against  all  Scotland's  will,  whereby  I  lost  the  keeping  of  my  son, 
and  my  house  of  Stirhng,  and  my  rule  of  the  realm,  which  I  had  by  right." 

From  this  passage  it  appears  that  the  occupation  of  Stirling 
Castle  was  (dueen  Margaret's  right  only  as  dueen  Regent ;  but 
when  she  forfeited  that  dignity  on  her  second  marriage,  Stirling, 
as  she  here  observes,  was  lost  to  her. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  149 

"  And  all  this,"  resumes  Margaret,  "  for  his  sake  who  now  hath  shown 
himself  as  unkindly  to  me  as  possible,  which  all  the  realm  knows ;  holds  my 
living  from  me  as  far  as  he  may ;  and,  above  all  things,  he  spoke  open  dis- 
honor of  me,  which  is  no  token  of  love  :  and  I  did  neither  displeasure  nor 
dishonor  to  him,  as  is  well  known.  My  lord,  this  is  no  good  way  to  cause 
me  to  come  to  my  Lord  Angus.  Sith  I  took  him  at  mine  own  pleasure,  I 
will  not  be  hosted  (browbeat)  into  taking  him  now.  Thus  I  must  do  the  best 
I  may  to  get  friends,  since  his  Grace,  that  I  trusted  most  in,  puts  me  by 
without  a  fault,  which  I  shall  never  make  to  his  Grace  (Henry  VIII.),  as  I 
shall  write  at  length  to  him  by  a  servant  of  mine.  My  lord,  I  trusted  that 
you  would  rather  have  helped  me  at  the  King's  Grace  my  brother's  hand 
than  hindered  me.  You  must  hold  me  excused  that  I  write  so  plainly,  for 
you  have  written  right  sharply  to  me.  No  more  at  this  time  ;  but  God  keep 
you.     Written  at  Stirling,  the  xi.  day  of  March." 

Margaret  kept  her  word.  She  wrote  m  such  indignation  to 
her  terrific  brother,  that  he  called  all  his  Council  to  task,  and 
demanded  to  see  the  copies  of  the  epistles  that  had  passed  between 
Wolsey  and  the  Lord  Dacre.  The  antagonistic  attitude  assumed 
by  Scotland,  under  the  rule  of  Margaret's  new  love,  the  Regent, 
was  the  best  excuse  that  the  prime  minister  and  the  Lord  AVarden 
of  the  Marches  could  offer  for  the  outrageous  charges  they  had 
brought  against  her.  They  had,  however,  carried  their  attacks 
too  far.^  Margaret  contrived  to  enlist  her  brother  on  her  side  of 
the  question.  One  day,  with  a  lowering  brow,  he  demanded  the 
letter  she  had  lately  written  to  my  Lord  Dacre,  murmuring 
"  against  the  Scots  for  their  evil  entreatment  of  his  sister,"  he 
sternly  ordered  Wolsey  to  produce  her  correspondence,^  and  when 
delivered,  he  retired  wrathfully  for  its  private  perusal. 

Albany  had  deprived  Gavin  of  the  temporalities  of  the  bishopric 
of  Dunkeld,  for  the  part  he  took  in  the  insurgency  of  his  nephew. 
Margaret  boasted  that  the  Uegent  had  such  good  bearing  toward 
her  "  that  he  had  given  her  the  profits  of  this  rich  bishopric," 
only  inferior  to  St.  Andrews  and  Glasgow  :  moreover,  the  Regent 
had  given  an  abbacy  to  her  servant,  and  other  benefices,  for  her 
help.  "Wherefore,"  continues  this  fickle  woman,  "I  pray  his 
Grace  (Henry  VIII.)  right  effectuously  that  he  help  not  the  said 
Gavin  of  Dunkeld,  considering  the  great  evil  he  has  done  to  this 

^  There  is  a  terrible  series  of  letters  in  the  Chapter  House,  Westminster, 
against  her  from  Wolsey's  correspondents,  which  might  well  raise  tlie  wrath 
of  Henry  VIII. 

2  Sir  Henry  Ellis,  Historical  Letters,  third  series,  vol.  ii.  p.  53,  N"o  dates; 
but  the  circumstances  agree  with  this  epoch  of  Margaret's  life. 


150  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

realm  of  Scotland  by  his  council ;  for  he  has  been  the  cause  of  all 
the  trouble  and  dissension  in  this  realm."  ^ 

Then  Margaret  proceeded  to  express  her  personal  anger,  because 
Gavin  Douglas  "-  had  made  evil  report  ,of  her,  both  in  Scotland 
and  England,  falsely,"  as  she  of  course  asseverates.  "  And 
since,"  concludes  she,  in  a  climax  of  spite,  "I  helped  him  to  get 
the  benefice  of  Dunkeld,  I  sal  now  help  him  to  lose  the  same  I 
Considering  the  displeasure  he  has  done  me,  both  in  Vi^ord  and 
deed,  to  my  utter  dishonor,  all  in  his  power,  quhilk  he  can  not 
deny,  I  trust  your  Grace  will  make  him  na  help,  na  favor  him  I".'' 

Her  spouse  wrote,  nearly  at  the  same  time  (December  12, 
1521),  a  cautious  letter  to  Cardinal  Wolsey,  dated  from  his  place 
of  sanctuary  or  concealment,  the  Kirk  of  Steyle.  Not  one  word 
does  the  sagacious  husband  of  Margaret  say  against  her  :  she 
was,  he  knew,  the  mighty  Henry's  sister,  and  that  it  would  not 
be  politic  to  speak  of  her  according  to  the  provocation  she  gave. 

Gavin  Douglas  being  "  accrased,"  as  he  says,  or  sickly  with 
traveling,  M^as  ten  days  journeying  between  the  Scottish  Border 
and  Waltham  Cross,  where  he  rested.  When  at  length  he  had 
access  to  the  royal  brother  of  his  imdutiful  niece,  the  Scottish 
Glueen,  his  testimony  regarding  her  proceedings,  and  of  her  new 
love,  the  Scottish  E.egent,  occasioned  an  angry  letter  from  Henry. 
The  King  disdained  to  address  his  remonstrance  to  the  offending 
parties,  but  wrote  at  once  to  the  Scottish  Privy  Council,  telling 
them  more  of  his  mind  concerning  his  sister  and  Albany  than  was 
perhaps  consistent  with  her  reputation. 

One  would  think,  as  this  angry  manifesto  of  Henry  VIH.  pro- 
ceeds, that  every  idea  of  divorce  would  ever  have  been  abhorrent 
to  the  soul  of  that  monarch.  He  denounces  Albany  as  "  contriv- 
ing and  heinously  purposing  the  divorce  of  the  Q,ueen,  our  sister, 
from  her  lawful  husband  Angus,  and  purposing  to  contract 
miarriage  with  her  himself,  whereby  not  only  the  person  of  our 
nephew  is  in  great  danger  of  being  destroyed,  but  also  our  sister, 
Q,ueen  Margaret,  is  on  the  eve  of  ruin,  to  our  great  dishonor  and 
displeasure."  ^  He  advises  the  assembled  estates  to  rid  themselves 
of  their    Regent,    "lest,"  says  he,   "they   should    dishonor  the 

^  Sir  Henry  Ellis,  Historical  Letters,  third  series,  vol.  ii.  p.  289. 
2  Ibid. 

"  MS.  Harleian,  1224,  art.  25,  translated  from  the  French  by  J.  0.  Halli- 
well.     Letters  of  the  Kings  of  England,  vol.  i.  p.  267. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  „  151 


Q,ueen,  my  sister,  and  provoke  us  to  do  you  all  tlie  harm  and 
damage  we  can  (for  which  we  should  be  sorry)."  ^ 

Lord  Herbert  of  Cherbury  is  the  only  historian  who  cites  Al- 
bany's very  natural  retort  to  Henry  VIII. 's  revilings  regarding 
his  intentions  of  marrying  Q,ueen  Margaret,  of  "  How  could  he 
marry  her,  even  if  she  were  divorced  from  Angus,  when  he  had 
a  wife  of  his  own  ? ' ' 

The  Q,ueen's  accusation  of  the  learned  Gavin  Douglas  as  the 
person  who  had  spirited  up  all  his  tribe  against  her,  is  certainly 
pretty  well  borne  out  by  his  letter  written  to  Cardinal  Wolsey, 
from  "  the  Inn  of  Carlisle"  (some  house  of  reception  for  northern 
travelers  in  London).  Throwing  aside  all  his  ecclesiastical  cau- 
tion, he  gives  vent  to  the  vexation  of  heart  which  oppressed  him 
when  he  found  that  his  nephew,  the  Earl  of  Angus,  tired  of 
lurking  in  the  purlieus  of  Steyle  Church,  had  delivered  himself 
up  to  the  mercy  of  the  Regent  Albany,  and  returned  to  Edin- 
burgh. When  Bishop  Gavin  heard  the  news,  in  the  last  days  of 
January — "I  am,"  wrote  he,  "aweary  of  mine  own  life,  and 
promise  to  God  and  your  noble  Grace,  as  your  humble  servant 
and  true  Christian  priest,  that  I  sal  never  have  or  take  ivaij  with 
the  Duke  of  Albany,  the  unworthy  Earl  of  Angus,  or  others  that 
assist  the  said  Duke.  Nor  never  sal  I  pass  to  Scotland,  but  at 
your  pleasure,  as  long  as  this  wicket  Duke  is  therein,  or  has  rule 
thereof;  and  I  trust  my  brother  and  friends  will  use  my  council." 
And  then  Gavin  Douglas  bursts  into  contemptuous  bitterness  re- 
garding his  nephew  Angus.  "  Albeit,"  he  continues,  "  yon  young 
witless  fool  is  running  on  his  own  mischief  by  the  continual  per- 
suasion of  wily,  subtile  men,  showing  to  him,  L  doubt  not,  many 
feigned  letters  and  wonderful  terrors,  and  that  the  Duke  of  Albany 
should  marry  the  dueen."  The  letter  concludes  with  mention 
of  the  poverty  to  which  he  was  reduced.'^  Q,ueen  Margaret  and 
Albany  joined  to  urge  the  obedience  of  Gavin  to  the  orders  of  the 
Pope,  that  he  should  speedily  pass  onward  to  Rome  ;  but  he  passed 
nowhere  excepting  to  his  grave.  He  died  of  the  plague,  soon 
after  he  wrote  the  above  letter,  and  is  buried  in  the  church  of 
the  Savoy. 

^  MS.  Harleian,  1224,  art.  25,  translated  from  the  French  by  J.  0.  Halli- 
•well.     Letters  of  the  Kings  of  England,  vol.  i.  p.  267. 

2  The  letter  is  dated  January  31,  and  must  have  been  written  in  1521-2. 
Original  Letters,  edited  by  Sir  H.  Ellis.    Third  Series,  vol.  i.  p.  299. 


152  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

As  the  Regent  Albany  had  returned  to  Scotland  at  the  loving 
invitation  of  (iueen  Margaret,  it  may  be  presumed  that  she  was 
particularly  exasperated  at  her  brother's  proceedings,  all  which 
she  considered  were  owing  to  the  instigations  of  Gavin  Douglas, 
then  his  guest  in  London.  Her  entreaties  for  money,  which  were 
ever  the  pre-eminent  subject  of  all  her  communications  with  her 
brother,  were  met  by  him  with  scornful  refusal.  Worse  than 
that,  Henry,  in  return  for  all  the  letters  and  blandishments  of 
Albany  (sent  by  Gualtier,  his  secretary),  wrote  him  a  ferocious 
letter,  charging  him  with  "  dishonorable  and  damnable  abusing 
of  our  sister,  inciting  her  to  be  divorced  from  her  lawful  husband, 
the  Earl  of  Angus  (with  what  corrupt  intent,  God  knoweth)." 
Henry  refused  to  grant  Albany  a  renewal  of  the  truce,  which  was 
to  expire  at  the  ensuing  Candlemas  ;  and  roundly  affirmed  to  him 
"  that  he  would  use  every  possible  means  to  get  him  turned  out 
of  Scotland."^  These  letters,  and  another  long  lecture  on  the 
general  iniquity  of  divorce,  were  delivered  to  the  Regent  and  Par- 
liament of  Scotland  by  Henry's  herald,  Clarencieux,  sent  for  that 
purpose. 

The  departure  of  Angus  from  the  arena  of  public  action  at  this 
period  is  one  of  the  obscure  places  of  history,  on  which,  where  a 
few  gleams  of  light  happen  to  fall,  some  amusing  traits  display 
themselves.  It  will  excite  no  surprise  to  find  that  he  had  put 
himself  in  danger  of  the  Regent's  justice,  by  many  a  lawless 
prank, ^  during  the  five  years'  vacation  which  that  potentate  had 
allowed  him.  Although  John  Stuart,  Duke  of  Albany,  was  a 
long-enduring  and  good-natured  man,  who  never  shed  blood  but 
on  due  deservings  ;  although  he  preferred  sacrificing  a  dozen  rich 
bonnets,  or  toques,  in  a  session  of  Parliament  to  immolating  one 
human  creature  (for  when  unbearably  exasperated  he  always 
snatched  ofiMiis  cap  and  flung  it  behind  the  fire),  yet  human  pa- 
tience has  its  bounds  ;  and  Angus  well  knew  that  the  Regent  had 
in  former  times  made  a  wholesome  example  of  the  two  Homes, 
out  of  his  entire  conviction  that  their  treachery  had  caused  not 
only  the  death,  but  the  defeat  of  James  IV.  at  Flodden.^ 

Angus  had  just  lost  his  brilliant  relative  Gavin  Douglas.  Al- 
though that  prelate  died  with  a  mind  full  of  contempt  for  his 

1  Letter  of  Henry  VHI.  to  John,  Duke  of  Albany.  Cott.  MSS.,  edited 
by  J.  O.  Halliwell.     Letters  of  Kings  of  England, 

'  Lesley,  p.  117.  3  Bishop  Lesley,  Hist,  of  Scotland,  p.  122. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  153 

nephew,  there  is  no  doubt  he  would  have  done  all  in  his  power 
to  aid  him.  Thus  forsaken  on  all  sides,  he  tried  to  revive  the 
affection  of  dueen  Margaret  in  his  behalf.  A  very  small  portion 
remained,  if  her  own  passionate  words — written  long  afterward — 
may  be  brought  against  her.  It  is  always  an  ungracious  and 
mahcious  task  for  a  historian  to  find  evil  and  sinister  reasons  for 
actions  which  are  in  effect  kmd  and  good.  Notwithstanding  all 
her  vows  of  implacability,  Margaret  proved  that  cruelty  and  blood- 
guiltiness  were  not  her  vices.  She  actually  pleaded  with  the 
Regent  for  her  spouse  so  effectually,  that  he  was  forgiven  all  his 
treasons  if  he  agreed  to  depart  for  France  with  his  brother 
George.  A  comedy  certainly  occurred  at  their  departure,  of 
which  the  sole  particulars  are  to  be  drav/n  from  an  anecdote  in 
a  cotemporary  chronicle,^  and  that  anecdote  misplaced  in  chro- 
nology. It  seems  that  Angus,  after  he  had  made  a  favorable 
agreement  with  Glueen  Margaret  and  Albany,  lingered  in  Edin- 
burgh contrary  to  his  engagement.  One  night  the  Regent,  re- 
solving to  make  Angus  fulfill  liis  treaty  by  strategy  rather  than 
force,  had  the  wine-cup  out  of  which  he  and  his  brother  George 
were  carousing  so  potently  drugged  that  they  both  fell  into  a  pro- 
found slumber.  They  were  then  bound  and  taken  to  the  vessel 
which  had  waited  for  them  at  Leith,  and  being  carried  on  board 
in  a  state  of  unconsciousness,  they  were  deposited  in  France,  and 
remained  some  days  in  Dieppe  Castle  before  they  could  guess 
where  they  were,  or  what  was  meant  to  be  done  with  them.  In 
a  short  time  the  good-tempered  Regent  gave  an  honorable  turn 
to  the  banishment,  by  investing  Angus  with  a  diplomatic  employ- 
ment as  resident-ambassador  to  the  court  of  France.  Albany, 
meantime,  gave  the  herald  Clarencieux  an  audience  in  reply  to 
the  public  ratings  which  he  had  delivered  from  the  King  of  Eng- 
land, his  master,  before  the  Council  and  Parliament.  On  the 
matter  of  the  accusations  Henry  VIII.  had  loudly  made  regarding 
Q,ueen  Margaret's  intimacy  with  him,  Albany  spoke  like  a  man 
of  honor  and  a  gentleman.  With  great  delicacy  he  left  the  coarse 
Tudor' s  taunts  unanswered,  except  by  saying,  "  He  used  clemency 
and  mercy  to  the  Earl  of  Angus,  not  for  his  own  deserts,  but  prin- 
cipally out  of  respect  for  the  Q,ueen,  whom  he  ever  honored  as 

1  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  He,  or  his  editors,  have  displaced  Angus'  forced 
sojoui-n  in  France,  but  the  circumstances  are  correct,  since  Angus  was  never 
sent  there  but  once  by  Albany. 


154  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

his  sovereign's  mocler.''^  Henry  VIII.  was  infuriated  when  he 
found  how  cleverly  Albany  had  ridded  Glueen  Margaret,  himself, 
and  the  Scottish  realm,  of  the  head  of  the  turbulent  clan  of  Doug- 
las. His  rage  showed  itself  against  the  unfortunate  Scotch  resi- 
dent in  England,  by  an  edict  which  may  excite  a  smile  at  first ; 
but  a  moment's  thought  will  show  that  it  was  an  outrage  equally 
against  the  laws  of  nations  and  of  Christianity.  He  made  a  proc- 
lamation that  every  Scotchman,  of  whatsoever  degree,  was  to 
depart  England  forthwith,  on  foot,  with  a  white  cross  marked  on 
his  outward  garment.^  Many  a  tragedy,  many  a  strange  adven- 
ture and  hair-breadth  escape  of  the  poor  souls  thus  branded  as 
the  victims  of  national  spite,  must  this  freak  of  the  despot  have 
originated.  Who  in  the  v/orld  of  romance  ever  imagined  such  a 
journey  as  that  of  the  homeward  foot-march  of  Scottish  subjects, 
through  an  inimical  country,  with  Henry  VIII. 's  white-cross  marks 
on  their  shoulders  ? 

War,  conducted  with  all  the  venomous  hatred  which  such 
measures  were  likely  to  excite,  broke  out  between  the  English 
and  Scotch.  But  never  had  Glueen  Margaret  been  equally  happy. 
Her  husband  was  gone  ;  there  was  no  person  likely  to  gather  her 
Ettrick  rents  but  herself ;  the  Regent  had  not  only  taken  off  the 
distringa  laid  by  the  Council  on  the  rest  of  the  income  of  her 
jointure,  but  he  had  allotted  to  her  a  very  handsome  gratuity 
from  the  rich  subsidies  he  had  brought  from  France,  and,  in  pro- 
cess of  time,  she  deemed  would  certainly  give  her  himself,  for 
his  fondness  for  her  had  raised  the  furious  remonstrances  of  Eng- 
land, and  proved  the  subject  of  that  series  of  solemn  sermons 
delivered  by  the  herald  Clarencieux  before  the  Privy  Council, 
and  then  before  the  Parliament  of  Scotland  in  full  session.  Angus 
had  lost  his  feudal  power,  and  with  it  the  support  of  England  ; 
she  should  have  her  divorce  ;  Albany's  wife  would  die  by  the 
time  it  was  pronounced  ;  she  should  marry  the  handsome  chivalric 
Regent,  and  live  happy  in  all  the  splendor  of  youth,  beauty,  and 
royalty  for  the  time  to  come. 

Scarcely  could  Q,ueen  Margaret  have  combined  the  hopes  that 
promised  her  such  a  delightful  futurity,  when  one  dire  disease 
dispelled  the  illusion.  An  illness  which  had  hung  over  her  all 
the  autumn  gathered  strength  in  November,  and,  breaking  out 
while  she  was  resident  with  her  son  at  Stirling  Castle,  proved  the 
1  Bishop  Lesley's  History  of  Scotland,  p.  118.  2  ibid,  191. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  155 

confluent  small-pox,  from  which  she  sufiered  with  such  severity 
that  her  death  even  was  reported  on  the  Borders.^  The  Glueen, 
in  the  midst  of  her  violent  illness,  was  annoyed  and  harassed  by 
the  officiousness  of  Wolsey,  who  was  urgent  for  the  return  of  her 
hated  husbmd,  Angus,  and  for  her  reconciliation  with  him.  Ill 
as  Margaret  was,  and  prevented  from  having  recourse  to  her  in- 
defatigable pen,  she  dictated  an  answer  to  the  Cardinal,  acknowl- 
edging a  letter  from  him  (dated  from  Wolsey's  house  beside 
Westminster  the  i2th  of  November,  delivered  by  Clarencieux 
the  English  herald),  which  her  illness  prevented  her  from  an- 
swering for  more  than  a  month.  The  (iueen  reproached  Wolsey 
with  Lord  Dacre's  conduct,  who,  after  he  had  received  her  letter 
of  information  respecting  the  forces  and  affairs  of  the  Scotch,  sent 
it  again  to  her,  to  her  great  danger  and  displeasure — at  a  time, 
too,  when  the  dismal  illness  of  the  small-pox  was  upon  her ; 
"  and  r  was,  and  yet  is,"  as  she  says  in  her  droll  phraseology, 
"at  malaise,  and  troubled  with  sickness.'"^ 

Lord  Dacre  did  pretty  well  as  seemed  good  in  his  own  eyes, 
neither  can  any  one  wonder  at  the  insurmountable  disgust  with 
which  Margaret's  treachery  had  inspired  him  ;  but  sending  back 
her  spy-dispatches,  at  the  risk  of  falling  into  the  hands  of  the 
Scotch,  must  have  originated  in  some  blunder  of  his  messenger, 
Margaret  exclaims  rather  piteously  on  the  subject :  "  It  is  no 
marvel  that  Scotsmen  are  unkind  to  me,  when  Englishmen  are 
so  unthankful  I"     She  then  continues  her  epistle  to  Dacre  : — 

"  My  Lord,  as  touching  any  matters  between  me  and  my  Lord  of  Angus, 
I  has  shown  my  mind  plainly  to  Clarencieux,  to  whom  you  will  give  cre- 
dence (belief),  beseeching  you  to  take  my  part ;  and  if  there  be  any  person 
who  would  solicit  you  to  the  contrary  in  that  matter,  that  you  would  give 
them  no  credence,  for  I  assure  you  that  he  and  I  shall  never  forgader  (meet 
together),  nor  agree,  for  certain  cause  which  ye  shall  understand  hereafter. 
I  am  plain  to  you,  therefore  I  beseech  you  to  help  us  better  to  part  than 
forgader  ;  and  doing  this  you  will  do  me  a  singular  pleasure." 

The  "singular  pleasure"  thus  entreated  for  by  Glueen  Mar- 
garet of  slipping  her  neck  out  of  the  matrimonial  yoke  which 
she  had  a  few  years  previously  assumed  with  impetuous  eager- 
ness, was  a  pleasure  likewise  much  desired  by  a  vast  number  of 

1  Dispatches  of  Lord  Dacre  to  Wolsey.     Cott.  MS.,  Cal.  B.  vi.  f.  270. 

2  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  Queen  Mai-garet  to  Cardinal  Wolsey,  Dec.  26, 
1522. 


156  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

other  willful  people  in  her  dominions,  on  whom  her  example  was 
likely  to  have  the  baneful  ciiect  of  loosening  all  family  ties,  to 
the  great  misery  of  society  in  general. 

"  My  Lord,"  continued  Queen  Margaret,  still  addressing  Wolsey,^  "  an'  it 
please  you,  commend  me  lieartily  to  the  King's  Grace,  my  brother,  and  thank 
his  Grace  for  the  diamond  that  his  Grace  sent  me,  and  beseech  his  Grace  to 
be  good  brother  to  me,  as  his  Grace  ever  was.  And  his  Grace,  and  you  my 
Lord,  must  needs  have  me  excused  that  I  wrote  not  to  his  Grace  and  to  you 
with  mine  own  hand  at  this  time,  for  because  my  hands  and  all  my  body  be 
so  full  of  the  small-pox  that  I  neither  write  nor  sit,  nor  scantly  speak,  and 
hereafter  when  I  may  (can)  I  shall  write  with  my  own  hand,  at  length,  as 
please  God,  who  preserve  you  evermore  in  prosperity. 

"  At  StirUng,  the  26th  of  December. 

"  My  Lord,  I  have  sent  a  token  to  the  King's  Grace,  my  brother,  by 
Clarencieux :  it  is  a  ring  whicli  his  Grace  Henry  VIIL  sent  me  afore." 

The  beauty  of  Q,ueen  Margaret  has  been  mentioned  at  times 
"with  adoration  by  statesmen  and  historians.  She  undeniably 
appears  handsome  in  her  portrait  at  Hampton  Court,  painted 
when  she  visited  the  court  of  England.  No  hint  regarding  her 
beauty  ever  appears  in  any  correspondence  after  the  winter  of 
1522,  when  she  suffered  so  severely  with  the  small-pox.  Her 
pictures,  when  she  recovered,  prove  that  a  dismal  change  had 
taken  place  in  her  person.  The  appearance  and  expression  of 
Holbein's  portrait  of  her,  in  middle  life,  gives  the  idea  to  the  be- 
holder as  if  the  sight  of  one  of  her  eyes  was  covered  by  the 
growth  called  a  pearl,  causing  an  unpleasant  obliquity  of  vision, 
and  a  sinister  expression  of  countenance.  Lord  Dacre's  pen  rests 
in  peace  after  the  brightness  of  Q,ueen  Margaret's  visage  was 
thus  dimmed  and  eclipsed.  No  more  reports  of  the  Regent's 
alarming  attentions,  no  more  tales  of  the  Glueen's  coquetries  with 
the  Regent,  no  more  lectures  concerning  the  midnight  escort  of 
Sir  James  Hamilton,  "  whom  the  Glueen  could  not  hinder  from 
riding  on  the  road  to  Linlithgow  when  she  traveled  that  way." 

1  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  Queen  Margaret  to  Cardinal  Wolsey,  Dec.  26, 
1522. 


CHAPTER    V. 


SUMMARY. 

Slow  conralescence  of  Queen  Margaret — Extends  her  protection  to  the  Prioress  of  Cold- 
stream— Queen's  personal  jealousy  of  Regent  Albany — Excites  her  son  against  tutelage 
— Her  enmity  to  the  Regent — Her  treachery — Regent  forbids  her  access  to  her  son — Her 
letters  on  the  subject — She  mediates  peace  with  England — Is  importunate  for  money — 
Her  jealous  fury  against  Lord  Fleming's  sister — Accuses  Lord  Fleming  of  poisoning  the 
Drummond  sisters — Her  letter  and  interview  with  the  Regent — Her  speech  to  the  Privy 
Council — Regent  bids  her  farewell  when  he  leaves  Scotland  forever — Margaret  threat- 
ened with  her  husband's  return — Henry  V'lII.  gives  her  money  to  pay  guards — Margaret 
releases  her  son  from  tutelage — Her  new  favorite,  Henry  Stuart,  lieutenant  of  the  guard 
— Queen's  regency  disputed  by  the  Chancellor — She  seizes  the  Great  Seal  and  others — 
She  gives  all  the  seals  to  Henry  Stuart— Her  brother  sends  Dr.  Magnus  as  envoy- 
Scenes  and  dialogues  with  her — Gives  her  a  letter  from  Angus — Edinburgh  wives  in 
her  presence-chamber — Nocturnal  attack  of  her  husband — Queen  orders  cannon  to  be 
fired— Retreat  of  her  husband— Queen  retires  to  Edinburgh  Castle— Her  conduct  when 
there. 

The,  painful  effects  of  her  recent  malady  kept  the  Q,ueen  sev- 
eral weeks  at  Stirling  Castle  in  the  winter  of  1523  ;  she  could 
not  be  moved  ;  and  as  the  pestilence  spread  among  her  house- 
hold there,  the  Privy  Council  took  alarm  for  the  life  of  the  royal 
child,  and  caused  his  removal  to  his  palace  of  Dalkeith.  The 
Regent  went  to  France  early  in  the  year  1523,  to  obtain  aid  of 
soldiers  and  ammunition. 

Meantime,  great  movements  took  place  in  England  against 
Scotland.  An  immense  feudal  militia  advanced  to  the  aid  of 
Dacre  for  the  invasion  of  the  Scotch,  or  rather  to  watch  if  the 
Scotch  meant  to  invade  them.  At  this  time  the  Clueen  remem- 
bered the  obligations  she  owed  to  the  Prioress  of  Coldstream, 
when,  in  sore  distress  (just  before  the  birth  of  Lady  Margaret 
Douglas),  she  took  refuge  at  her  priory.  Robin  Barton,  her  own 
faithful  comptroller,  appealed  to  his  royal  mistress  regarding  the 
cruel  intentions  of  Lord  Surrey  to  his  aunt  the  Prioress  ;  for 
Surrey  had  discovered  that  the  holy  lady  of  Coldstream  (now 
Glueen  Margaret  was  on  friendly  terms  with  the  Regent  Albany) 
sent  all  sorts  of  intelligence  relative  to  the  proceedings  of  the 


158  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

English  army  on  the  Border  to  the  Scotch.  The  reader  is  be- 
hind the  scenes,  by  knowing  that  the  Prioress  was  aunt^  to  the 
Glueen's  comptroller. 

"  I  am  informed,  my  Lord,"  wrote  Margaret  to  Surrey,  "  that  you  are 
come  to  the  borders  forenent  Scotland,  and  there  is  a  good  friend  and  servant 
of  mine,  which  wo7is  nearest  to  your  bounds  of  England,  and  is  prioress  of  a 
poor  abbacy  of  sisters,  called  Coldstream,  and  it  appears  to  be  in  great 
trouble  on  both  sides,  and  she  is  nearest  to  the  strait,  and  that  place  has 
been  troubled  divers  times  before.  I  pray  you,  for  my  sake,  that  her  place 
may  be  untroubled,  and  be  brought  in  no  strait  by  Englishmen,  for  they 
that  are  good  servants  and  friends  to  me,  methinks,  should  have  favor  of  you 
for  my  sake,  as  I  trust  you  will.  I  believe  she  has  the  King  my  brother's 
protection  to  show,  therefore  you  will  show  more  kindly  to  her,  I  have  not 
been  cumbersome  to  you  in  my  desires,  and  this  is  reasonable,  and  God  keep 
you."  ^ 

The  favorable  mind  of  Glueen  Margaret  toward  the  Regent 
Albany  changed  remarkably  before  the  month  of  June.  She  had 
received  intelligence  from  some  of  her  informers  (probably  of  the 
English  faction)  which  infuriated  her  temper  with  jealousy  against 
him — personal  jealousy  it  was,  as  it  is  easy  to  gather  from  her 
subsequent  letters,  regarding  the  sister  of  Lord  Fleming  ;  and  her 
rage  as  a  woman  was  aggravated  by  consciousness  of  that  deplo- 
rable change  in  her  beauty  which  the  ravages  of  the  small-pox 
in  the  previous  autumn  had  effected.  The  scheme  she  devised 
for  annoying  the  faithless  Regent  was  to  render  her  young  son 
discontented  with  the  wholesome  restraints  of  his  educational 
seclusion  at  Stirling  Castle.  How  wisely  and  excellently  that 
education  was  progressing,  not  only  by  the  tuition  of  his  accom- 
plished preceptor,  Gavin  Dunbar  ^  (lately  appointed  Archbishop 
of  Glasgow,  on  the  promotion  of  James  Beton  to  the  primacy  of 
St.  Andrews),  but  in  the  hours  of  recreation  by  his  faithful  ser- 
vant. Sir  David  Lindsay,  the  works  of  that  great  poet  will  reveal. 

It  has  been  shown  how  gently  and  fondly  David  Lindsay  bent 
his  richly  endowed  intellect  to  amuse  the  royal  babe,  giving  him 

^  Mackenzie's  Lives.  It  likewise  occurs  in  the  State  Papers.  It  seems  a 
small  circumstance,  but  it  is  a  most  important  link  in  the  life  of  Margaret 
Tudor. 

^  This  note  seems  to  be  written  in  1523,  in  March  or  early  in  April  of 
that  year. 

^  He  was,  as  well  as  his  namesake  the  other  Gavin  (of  the  house  of 
Douglas),  a  poet  of  great  estimation  in  his  day. 


MARGARET     TUDOR,  159 

due  exercise  of  body  and  mind,  awakening  his  faculties  by  de- 
grees, as  he  apportioned  his  information  to  the  years  of  the  tender 
Prince. 

"  When  thou  wert  young,  I  bore  thee  on  mine  arm 
Full  tenderly,  till  thou  began  to  gang} 
And  in  thy  bed  oft  lapped  thee  full  warm, 
With  lute  in  hand  full  sweetly  to  thee  sang; 
Soraethnes  in  dancing  fitfully  I  ilang, 
And  sometimes  played  thee  farces  on  the  floor, 
And  sometimes  like  a  fiend  transfigurate. 
And  sometimes  like  a  griesly  ghost  of  gray ; 
In  divers  forms  ofttimes  disfigurate, 
Sometimes  disguised  for  thee  full  pleasantly. 
So  since  thy  birth  I  have  continually 
Been  exercised,  and  aye  to  thy  pleasure ; 
Have  often  been  thy  steward,  cupper^  carver, 
Thy  purse-master  and  secret  treasurer — 
Thine  usher,  aye  since  thy  nativity, 
Who  to  this  hour  hath  kept  my  loyalty. 
Laud  be  unto  the  blessed  Trinity, 
That  such  a  wretclied  worm  hath  made  so  able 
Unto  so  great  a  prince  to  be  agreeable." 

After  awakening  the  young  King's  natural  love  for  melody,  by 
the  "  springs"  he  played  on  his  lute.  Sir  David  gradually  brought 
him  to  take  delight  in  historical  narration  by  imaginative  tales, 
by  ballad-lore  and  marvelous  traditions  ;  and  even  by  the  as- 
sumption of  fancy  and  character-costumes.  Sometimes  the  mirth- 
i'ulness  of  the  royal  boy  was  awakened  "  by  farces  played  on  the 
floor."  Sometimes  Sir  David  tried  his  courage  by  appearing  as 
"a  fiend  or  a  griesly  ghost  in  gray,"  plans  which  would  not  be 
endured  in  modern  times  ;  but  it  is  certain  that  proper  care  was 
taken  by  Sir  David  to  obliterate  superstitious  terror  instead  of 
inducing  it,  since  he  was  himself  one  of  the  most  able  combatants 
of  the  noxious  superstitions  which  the  increasing  corruptions  of 
the  E-oman  Catholic  church  of  Scotland  had  established  in  his 
country , 

In  Stirling  Park  the  young  King  was  solaced  by  the  entertain- 
ment of  various  tame  animals,  whose  tricks  and  playfulness  were 

1  To  walk  or  run  alone.  We  render,  as  far  as  possible,  our  extracts  from 
Sir  David  Lindsay  into  modern  orthography,  in  hopes  that  our  southern 
readers  may  admire  him  as  much  as  we  do. 

2  Cupbearer 


160  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

encouraged  by  his  faithful  David  Lindsay.  In  various  of  his  works 
he  mentions  these  playfellows  of  the  lower  creation,  so  pleasant 
to  the  amusements  of  those  children  who  are  wisely  taught  to 
treat  them  humanely,  and  not  to  gainsay  their  natural  habits. 
James  V.  had  been  presented  with  a  parrot  or  papingo,  then  a 
rare  bird.  8ir  David  Lindsay  took  charge  of  it,  with  other  animal 
dependents  of  his  young  monarch,  and  the  creature  was  an  espe- 
cial favorite.  Indeed,  she  did  not  rely  on  the  mere  possession  of 
what  Sir  David  calls  "  her  angel  feathers  green  and  gold,  and  of 
all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow ;"  she  had  been  given  an  education 
equal  to  any  parrot  who  is  on  her  preferment  in  the  Pantlieon  in 
these  days,  when  the  march  of  intellect  presses  forward  parrots 
equally  with  more  presumptuous  bipeds.  The  papingo  could 
whistle  the  tunes  to  which  the  gymnastics  of  that  period  were 
performed,  changing  her  measure  from  "  plat"  or  "  flat  foot"  to 
"  foot  before,"  or  from  the  first  to  the  fourth  dancing  position.  She 
could  sing  like  the  blackbird,  crow  like  a  cock,  'pew  like  the  gled 
or  kite,  and  chant  as  the  lark,  bark  like  the  dog,  and  cackle  as 
a  hen,  bleat  as  the  lamb,  and  bellow  as  the  bull,  she  could  wail 
like  the  gowk  or  cuckoo,  and  cry  and  sob  if  she  was  vexed,  be- 
sides,— 

"  She  could  climb  on  ane  cord,  and  laugh,  and  play  the  fool ; 
She  might  have  been  a  minstrel  against  Yule." 

This  "blessed  bird,"  as  Sir  David  calls  her,  was  so  pleasant  to 
him,  that  wherever  he  went  he  carried  her  on  his  wrist,  as  other 
gentlemen  did  their  falcons.  The  poor  papingo  met  with  the 
usual  ill  fate  of  favorites — she  escaped  into  the  park,  and  was 
killed  by  the  wild  birds. 

Sir  David  Lindsay  founded  one  of  his  most  popular  poems  on 
the  mishap  of  the  poor  papingo  ;  but  under  the  names  of  the  pye, 
the  raven,  and  the  hawk,  the  birds  who  killed  her,  he  took  his 
poetical  opportunity  of  satirizing  the  abuses  of  the  Regular  Canons, 
the  monks  and  friars.  From  the  child's  play  of  James  V.,  his 
parrot  and  his  poet,  was  the  impetus  given  to  the  religious  revolu- 
tion of  Scotland  ;  for  the  poem  became  popular,  and  the  enormi- 
ties in  the  government  of  church  and  state  which  called  for  ref- 
ormation became  known  to  all  men.^ 

1  The  Complaint  of  the  Papingo  was  written  in  1529.  Sir  David  Lindsay 
employed  the  leisure  with  which  Queen  Margaret  had  most  ungratefully 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  161 

When  the  young  King  of  Scotland  had  attained  his  eleventh 
year,  Sir  David  Lindsay  prepared  for  him  entertainment'  suitable 
to  a  higher  degree  of  intellect,  which  according  to  his  elegant 
delineation  of  the  qualities  of  James  he  required. 

"  For  now  thou  art  by  natural  influence, 
High  of  ingine  ^  and  right  inquisitive, 
Of  antique  stories  and  of  deeds  martial, 
Most  pleasantly  the  time  to  over-drive, 
I  have,  at  length,  the  stories  to  describe. 
Of  Hector,  Arthur,  and  the  gentle  Julius,^ 
Of  Alexander  and  the  great  Pompieus,* 
And  of  leil  lovers  many  a  story  amiable, 
I  have  for  thee  ofttimes  feigned  many  a  fable." 

The  story,  which  is  dressed  up  in  the  form  of  a  vision,  is,  in 
truth,  a  dissertation  on  natural  history,  geography,  and  astronomy, 
very  sweetly  touched,  and  adorned  with  exquisite  descriptive 
poetry.  When  Sir  David  Lindsay  places  under  the  consideration 
of  the  royal  boy  the  starry  spheres,  he  explains  to  him  the  re- 
flected light  of  the  moon,  and  speaks  of  her  with  no  little  ele- 
gance as 

"  Queen  of  the  sea  and  beauty  of  the  night." 

His  descriptions  of  the  planets  are  extremely  poetical,  by  no 
means  inferior  to  the  celebrated  passage  in  Schiller's  Wallenstein. 
Considering  that  the  modern  lights  of  science  had  not  arisen,  there 
are  some  passages  in  this  beautiful  astront)mical  poem  which  will 
startle  the  modern  reader.  Even  Tycho  Brahe  was  not  then 
born,  for  James  V.'s  grandson  visited  that  phih)sopher  on  his 
voyage  to  Denmark,  half  a  century  later.*  In  his  sketch  of 
geography  it  may  be  observed  that  Sir  David  includes  none  of  the 
then  new  discoveries  of  Cabot,  or  Columbus,  Pizarro  or  Cortez. 
After  examining  David  Lindsay's  delineations  of  the  calm  and 

furnished  him,  by  composing  a  series  of  naive  and  charming  reminiscences 
of  the  young  King's  infancy  and  youth,  which  awoke  all  James's  affections, 
and  caused  the  recall  of  his  early  friend  to  public  life,  by  crowning  him  Lion 
King-at-arms  in  1 530. — Tytler's  Life  of  Sir  David  Lindsay. 

1  Sir  David  Lindsay's  Dream,  written  for  the  instruction  of  the  young 
King. 

^  Of  high  genius.  ^  Julius  Csesar.  *  Pompey. 

^  Cole  MSS.  British  Museum. 


162  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

rational  course  of  life  of  the  young  royal  student,  it  is  scarcely 
possible  to  suppress  expressions  of  indignation  at  Glueen  Margaret's 
folly  in  interfering,  for  her  own  purposes,  with  the  course  of 
training  calculated  to  form  a  wise  and  great  King  of  a  cliild 
whose  ardent  temperament  was  too  apt  to  impel  him  into  irrepara,'- 
hie  errors.  Her  letters  to  England  prove  her  ill  intentions  in  dis- 
turbing and  irritating  his  fiery  disposition  by  taunts  unendurable 
to  any  spirited  boy — that  he  was  treated  as  an  infant — held  in 
captivity — made  a  tame  slave — under  pretense  of  educating  him. 
When  Margaret  wrote  to  Surrey,  she  speaks  much  of  her  schemes 
to  set  her  son  at  liberty.  She  unconsciously  gives  due  credit  to 
his  training,  for  these  are  the  expressions  she  uses  herself  con- 
cerning James  V.,  then  arrived  at  the  discreet  age  of  eleven 
years — wisdom  or  discretion  being  the  quality  most  insisted  upon 
for  him  by  his  discerning  Glueen-mother  : — 

"  Of  his  age,  my  Lord,^  I  trow  there  be  not  a  wiser  child,  nor  a  better 
hearted,  nor  that  dare  better  take  on  him  as  far  as  he  may :  he  wants 
nothing  but  help  to  bear  him  forth  in  his  good  quarrel.  And  I  assure  you, 
upon  mine  honor,  that  he  loves  not  the  Governor,  the  Duke  of  Albany,2  nor 
no  Frenchman,  and  that  the  King,  my  brother,  will  find,  an'  his  Grace  will 
help  him.  And  as  to  his  coming  forth  at  freedom,  he  will  bide  no  longer  in 
than  Monday  come  eight  days,  without  he  be  holden  perforce  by  the  Lords ; 
and  he  saith  plainly  '  that  no  good  Scottishman  will  hold  him  in  one  house 
against  his  will.'  Whereof  the  Frenchmen  that  are  here  are  right  sore 
displeased,  and  maketh  all  the  ways  they  can  to  stop  it,  by  money -giving 
and  other  fair  promises." 

The  excitement  the  Q.ueen  had  fomented  in  the  mind  of  the 
young  James  V.  had  the  effect  which  might  have  been  expected. 
The  royal  boy  became  outrageous  with  passion,  and  struck  one 
of  his  gentlemen  through  the  arm  with  his  dagger  who  resisted 
his  attempts  to  break  his  captivity,  as  his  foolish  mother  called 
his  educational  restraint.  The  young  King  threatened  the  porter 
with  his  dagger  after  this  exploit,  "  because  the  man  would  not 
open  the  gates  of  Stirling  Castle  at  his  order."  ^  When  all  this 
uproar  had  been  raised, -the  Glueen  could  not  find  the  money 
necessary  to  carry  into  effect  her   escape    with    her  son.     She 

^  State  Papers,  published  by  Commission,  1836,  vol.  iv.  p.  4.  Margaret 
to  Surrey. 

2  Of  such  ingratitude  James's  letters,  when  he  arrived  at  years  of  real 
discretion,  entirely  acquit  him. 

3  State  Papers,  (fee. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  163 

wrote  to  Surrey  regarding  money,  in  her  usual  strain  : — "  I  have 
nothing  now  to  uphold  my  honest  expenses,  without  I  lay  my 
cupboard  of  plate  in  pledge,  which  is  not  to  the  King  my  brother's 
honor."  ^  Surrey,  in  reply  to  her  proposal  of  escaping  over  the 
Border  with  her  son,  proposes  for  her  Grace  to  come  to  her  house 
at  Bonckle,  under  the  pretense  of  mediating  for  the  poor  misera- 
ble Borderers,  ruined  by  having  all  their  corn  burned.  She  was 
to  bring  with  her  all  her  best  stuft^,  plate,  and  jewels ;  "  and 
then,"  continues  he,  "  I,  with  a  good  power,  will  suddenly  come 
and  fetch  your  Grace,  stuff,  plate,  and  jewels  away,  otherways  I 
can  none  devise  ;  and  whereas  your  Grace  sent  for  a  token  a 
pair  of  beads  to  Lord  Maxwell,  trusting  he  would  have  suffered 
you  to  pass  through  his  country  into  this  realm,  it  was  thought  by 
me  and  my  Lord  Dacre  not  meet  to  be  done."  ^  He  wrote 
directly  afterward  to  Wolsey,  that  the  dueen  of  Scots  had 
"  altered  her  good  mind  to  run  away  into  England,  by  the  reason 
of  the  gifts  given  her  by  the  French."  ^  The  French  bribes  were 
either  not  sufficiently  high,  or  spent  when  the  Glueen-mother's 
mischievous  disturbance  of  her  young  son's  mind  again  commenced. 
In  James  V.'s  childhood  she  regrets,  in  letters  already  quoted, 
that  she  was  not  a  wayfaring  woman,  who  could  take  her  bairns 
on  her  arm  and  cross  the  Border  to  England  and  her  brother 
with  them.  Now  she  worked  with  all  her  might  on  the  passions 
of  the  King,  eleven  years  of  age,  to  elope  with  her  from  the  toils 
and  tasks  of  his  school-days  into  the  vicious  liberty  of  his  uncle's 
court,  which  she  painted  in  tempting  terms,  not  dwelling,  of 
course,  on  the  life-long  captivity  which  other  Kings  of  Scotland, 
his  ancestors,  had  suffered  in  the  fair  southern  land. 

The  Regent  Albany,  to  whom  the  turbulent  conduct  of  his 
royal  ward  was  duly  reported,  hastened  his  return  to  Scotland. 
He  landed  at  Kircudbright,  September  24,  with  a  French  force, 
to  repel  the  alarming  invasion  threatened  by  the  vast  feudal 
army  Henry  YHL,  under  Surrey  and  Dacre,  had  mustered  on  the 
Borders.  He  soon  guessed  who  was  the  instigator  of  the  childish 
heroics  of  the  young  monarch  at  Stirling  Castle — swaggering 
with  his  dagger,  and  striking  it  into  faithful  servants,  who  would 
not  return  the  assault  let  it  have  been  ever  so  murderous,     Albany 

^  Pinkerton,  vol.  ii.  p.  480. 

^  State  Papers,  published  by  Commission,  1836.     Vol.  iv.  p.  4. 

8  Ibid. 


164  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

would  not  visit  the  Glueen,  and,  in  consequence,  her  letters 
breathe  fury  against  him,  and  she  set  herself  to  betray  all  his 
plans  of  defense  of  Scotland.  Lord  Dacre,  although  likely  to  be 
benefited  as  a  general  by  such  conduct,  could  not  suppress  the 
manly  English  feeling  that  rose  in  his  breast  against  it  ;  and 
many  were  the  shrewd  remarks  he  made  on  the  sister  of  his 
formidable  sovereign,  when  he  wrote  to  the  English  Council.  In 
revenge,  Margaret  made  complaints  of  Dacre's  inactivity — that  he 
had  not  that  year  crossed  the  Scottish  Borders  to  do  mischief, 
although  she  had  given  him  perpetual  information  of  the  move- 
ments of  the  aids  which  the  Regent  Albany  had  brought  from 
France  for  the  defense  of  Scotland.  Her  machinations  took  the 
desired  effect  on  the  temper  of  her  terrific  brother,  and  a  rating 
was  dispatched  to  the  Lord  Warden,  which  would  have  been 
very  alarming  to  a  chieftain  less  bold  in  character  and  indepen- 
dent of  station.^  Wolsey  wrote,  by  order  of  Henry  VIIL,  reproofs 
to  this  effect,  "  that  there  were  suspicions  how  little  Lord  Dacre 
esteemed  the  mind  and  opinions  of  his  sovereign's  sister."  ^ 
Never  were  suspicions  better  founded  ;  Dacre's  disesteem  for 
Margaret's  mind,  opinions,  and,  withal,  her  entire  conduct,  could 
not  be  more  complete.  However,  urged  by  her  detestable  instiga- 
tions to  carry  sword  and  fire  into  the  unhappy  country  of  which 
she  called  herself  (olueen,  a  mighty  muster  took  place  of  all  the 
northern  English  chivalry.  Led  by  Dacre,  this  force  advanced 
and  burnt  Jedburgh,^  which  had  just  been  rebuilt  by  the  Regent 

1  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  i.  fol.  302.  Printed  by  Sir  H.  Ellis  in  the  original 
orthography.     Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  204.     Pirst  series,  Sept.  1523. 

^  Ibid. 

^  It  seems  that,  on  the  25th  of  September,  Lord  Dacre  had  sent  his  kins- 
man, Walter  Strickland,  of  Sizergh  Castle,  and  his  three  hundred  Kendal 
men,  to  attack  the  stronghold  of  Kerr  of  Fernihirst  with  artillery.  To  the 
surprise  of  all  parties,  after  a  desperate  onslaught,  Strickland  and  his  "men 
of  Kent-dale  bold"  were  repulsed.  On  the  wliole,  the  Scots  had  the  best  of 
it  in  the  desultory  warfare  of  that  day.  Then,  at  night,  the  English  camp 
was  terribly  discomfited  by  the  invasion  of  some  spiritual  adversary,  on 
whose  inbreak  they  had  not  calculated.  The  mischief  done,  although  gravely 
attributed  to  the  foul  fiend,  was  most  likely  effected  by  some  clever  rogues 
of  Border  horse-boys ;  for,  as  soon  as  it  was  dark,  the  whole  of  the  horses 
of  the  English  army  broke  loose  into  their  camp,  and,  mad  witli  terror, 
charged  their  masters  ;  who,  taking  them  for  the  Scottish  cavalry,  shot  at 
them  with  their  arrows  and  guns.  They  shot  away  a  hundred  sheaves  of 
arrows  in  this   strange  combat.     Fifty  of  the    English  steeds  committed 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  165 

Albany.  It  was  in  this  campaign  that  Lord  Dacre,  according  to 
his  own  remarkable  letter,  received  more  visits  than  were  welcome 
from  a  personage  with  whom  it  will  be  allowed  (when  the  general 
tenor  of  Border  warfare  is  remembered)  both  himself  and  many 
of  his  martial  auxiliaries  were  only  too  likely  to  become  better 
acquainted.  "  The  night  on  which  the  English  camped  in  Scot- 
land," according  to  his  coadjutor  Surrey's  sneering  dispatch, 
"  sprites  and  fearful  sights  beset  Lord  Dacre's  host,  and,  moreover, 
the  devil  made  six  distinct  inbreaks  among  their  tents."  What- 
soever that  potentate  personally  might  have  been  doing  by  the 
lurid  glare  of  the  flames  of  Jedburgh,  one  thing  is  undoubted,  that 
he  was  spiritually  active  when  the  following  epistle  was  indited 
by  Margaret ;  for  surely  never  was  such  a  one  written  before  by 
the  Q,ueen  of  an  invaded  country  to  the  General  of  its  enemy. 

"My  Lord,'  if  England  ever  made  them  strong  against  Scotland,  make 
them  now  right  strong !    For  I  assure  you,  since  Scotland  was  Scotland,  it 

felo-de-se  by  galloping  over  a  steep  precipice,  and  more  than  two  hundred 
and  fifty  thought  fit  to  rush  into  the  flames  of  Jedburgh,  where  they  were 
caught  by  Scotchwomen,  who,  according  to  the  proverb  of  "  an  ill  wind  tliat 
blows  nobody  good,"  were  seeking  what  they  could  find  in  the  conflagration. 
They  did  not  expect  the  horses  of  their  enemies,  but  they  were  glad  of  all 
they  could  get,  and  led  them  away,  though  some  "  be  right  evil  burnt" 
says  Lord  Surrey.  "  I  think  there  is  lost  above  eight  hundred  horses.  I 
dare  not  write,"  he  adds  sarcastically,  ''  the  wonders  Lord  Dacre  and  all  his 
company  do  say  they  saw  that  night,  of  sprites  and  fearful  sights ;  and  uni- 
versally all  their  company  say  plainly  that  the  devil  was  that  night  among 
them  six  times."* 

Notwithstanding  the  earnestness  of  the  Queen's  messages,  urging  the  in- 
vasion of  her  adopted  country.  Lord  Dacre  camped  but  one  night  in  Scot- 
land, and  then,  according  to  the  above  document,  he  met  with  a  strange  re- 
ception. Assuredly  that  night  was  signalized  by  a  combat  unheard  of  in  the 
annals  of  warfare,  of  an  army  against  its  own  horses.  It  has  been  a  fashion 
in  history  to  decry  Albany  and  his  regency  ;  but  those  who  can  appreciate 
his  difficulties,  from  the  divisions  he  encountered  in  the  country,  the  for- 
midable enemy  he  had  on  its  Borders,  and,  worse  than  all,  the  treacherous 
espionage  of  Queen  Margaret,  who  betrayed  the  most  important  proceedings 
of  his  council  to  the  English,  must  allow  Albany  to  have  been  a  very  great 
man,  even  to  have  preserved  the  Scottish  monarchy  for  his  young  kinsman. 
Tlie  fact  was,  that  he  not  only  gave  the  English  a  warm  reception  when  they 
crossed  his  frontier,  but  more  frequently  invaded  them. 

*  State  Paper  Commission,  printed  1836,  vol.  iv.  p.  310. 

*  Cott.  MS,,  B.  ii.  fol.  29.  Printed  by  Sir  H.  Ellis.  Historical  Letters,  vol.  i.  p.  217.  First 
series. 


166  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

was  never  made  so  strong.  And,  therefore,  I  warn  you  look  upon  your 
weal  and  honor,  for  you  will  be  right  sharply  assayed.  But  to  show  you  of 
truth  whether  the  Duke  of  Albany  Avill  pass  to  the  Borders  or  to  the  west, 
1  promise  you,  as  yet  there  is  none  that  knows,  for  the  Duke  will  show  his 
mind  to  no  Scottish  man." 

Again  Margaret  urges  her  base  selfish  interests,  bargaining  for 
payment  from  her  brother  ;  and  then  gives  the  following  ruinous 
detail  of  the  martial  strength  Scotland  was  employing  to  make 
head  against  her  rich  and  powerful  enemy. 

"Now  I  will  advertise  you  what  he  (Albany)  hath  brought  with  him,  and 
this  I  promise  you  is  truth.  First,  he  hath  eight-and-twenty  cannons,  and 
four  double  cannons  that  are  far  greater  than  any  that  was  brought  to  Nor- 
ham  at  the  field.i  Also,  he  hath  great  pavasies  going  upon  wheels  with  the 
artillery,  to  shoot  and  to  break  the  hosts  asunder ;  and  of  these  he  hath 
many ;  and  every  one  of  them  hath  two  sharp  swords  before  them,  that 
none  may  touch  them.  They  have,  besides  this,  great  number  of  smaller  ar- 
tillery of  all  sorts,  and  much  powder,  and  all  with  them  that  pertains  to  it,  and 
twelve  ships  with  victuals  and  wine.  And  of  these  they  have  sent  four  of 
their  ships,  with  wine  and  flour  and  four  great  cannons,  to  the  west  Border." 

The  R-egent's  arrangements  were  excellent,  but  with  this  be- 
trayal of  his  defense  of  Scotland's  independence,  and  of  the  trai- 
tress's own  son,  his  success  was  not  likely  to  be  remarkable.  She 
seems,  after  thus  injuring  the  country  of  which  she  called  herself 
Q/Ueen,  to  have  had  some  faint  sense  of  the  degradation  of  her 
position  ;  for  in  her  next  sentences  she  affects  nationality  as  an 
Englishwoman. 

"  I  promise  you,  my  Lord,  they  trust  to  win  Berwick  with  other  places, 
as  they  speak  right  plainly  and  despitefuUy,  which  doth  me  great  displeas- 
ure. Wherefore  I  pray  you,  my  Lord,  to  cause  the  King's  Grace  (Henry 
VIII.)  to  look  well  to  this  matter,  both  for  his  weal  and  honor,  and  the  weal 
of  his  nephew.  For  an'  they  win  any  advantage  now,  my  son  and  I  are  un- 
done, he  (the  Regent  Albany)  will  be  so  high  in  his  mind.  Think  you  surely 
I  would  not  write  this  an'  it  were  not  truth. 

^"  I  can  do  no  more  for  my  part,  but  advertise  you  of  all  things  that  I  know, 
and  that  I  shall  not  fail.  Also,  I  hear  say,  that  Richard  de  la  Pole  2  should 
come  shortly  into  England  with  a  power,  and  that  there  is  (are  those)  in 
England  that  will  take  his  part — therefore,  look  well  about  you  1" 

'  She  means  Flodden  by  "  the  field." 

^  Richard  de  la  Pole,  called  the  Knight  of  the  White  Rose,  was  Mar- 
garet's near  relative,  the  youngest  and  bravest  of  the  semi-royal  family  of 
Suffolk,  on  whom  the  crown  of  England  had  been  entailed  by  his  uncle 
Richard  III.     He  was  first  cousin  to  Margaret's  mother.  Elizabeth  of  York. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  167 

Margaret's  feelings  as  Englishwoman  and  Tudor  princess  might 
be  pleaded  in  excuse  for  her  betrayal  of  Scotland,  if  she  could, 
permit  her  biographer  to  do  so  with  justice  ;  but  the  remainder 
of  her  epistle  is  devoted  to  the  reiteration  of  her  expectation  of 
base  remuneration  for  her  intelligence.  An  interdict  from  the 
Duke  of  Albany,  preventing  Margaret  from  having  access  to  her 
son  at  Stirling,  followed  fast  upon  this  letter.  A  hurried  little 
billet  to  her  brother  was  her  next  communication. 

"  Queen  Margaret  to  Henry  VIII.^ 

"  [October  2,  1523.] 
"  You  shall  wit  that  I  am  by  force  put  away  from  the  King  (James  V.), 
as  in  part  you  may  see  by  other  letters  which  this  bearer  will  show  you. 
Give  credence  to  him,  and  answer  for  it  so  great  need.     In  all  haste, 

"  Written  ye  wit  whom." 
Endorsed — "  To  the  Right  High  and  Mighty  Prince,  my  dearest  brother 
the  King." 

It  may  fairly  be  guessed,  that  this  mysterious  note  was  written 
on  the  same  day  with  Margaret's  letter  of  remonstrance  to  the 
Regent  Albany,  against  the  very  necessary  measure  of  denying 
her  access  to  her  son  at  Stirling  Castle. 

"  You,  my  Lord,  and  the  rest  of  the  Lords,  has  ordained  that  I  shall  not 
abide  witli  my  son,  but  whiles  (sometimes)  come  and  see  him ;  and  if  this  be 
reasonable,  or  honorable,  I  report  me  (agree)  to  the  deed;  and  I  believe  in 
God,  that  hereafter  you  shall  have  cause  to  bethink  you  of  the  good  and  true 
part  I  have  kept  to  you." 

The  readers  of  Margaret's  previous  letters  will  be  rather  scan- 
dalized at  this  willful  and  unasked  perjury.  For  even  supposing 
that  Margaret  suspected  that  the  Regent  meditated  sufficient 
mischief  against  James  V.  to  induce  the  plots  and  plans  she  had 
been  contriving  since  June,  for  carrying  off  her  son  over  the  Bor- 
der, yet  calhng  on  God  to  witness  her  friendship  to  Albany  must 
inspire  those  who  know  her  real  proceedings  with  disgust.  The 
whole  letter  is  in  the  peculiarly  canting  strain  of  her  uncle  Rich- 
ard III.,  whose  profuse  use  of  the  name  of  God,  in  all  his  diplo- 
matic letters,  adds  hypocrisy  to  his  undoubted  sins,  of  which,  with 
every  charitable  deduction,  a  long  list  remains. 

The  treachery  with  which  Q.ueen  Margaret  had  betrayed  the 

»  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  i.  p.  IIT. 


168  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

whole  of  the  defenses  of  Scotland,  in  her  private  letters  to  Surrey, 
raises  infinitely  more  disgust,  when  contrasted  with  the  grimace 
of  her  public  letter  of  the  10th  of  November,  asking  truce  for 
Scotland,  because  she  should  think  herself  happy,  she  says,  "  gif 
I  might  bring  the  same  to  good  point,  considering  the  great  trou- 
ble that  is  like  to  be,  and  hath  been,  betwixt  the  realms  ;  and  / 
being  so  tender  on  both  the  sides,  methink  of  reason  there  should 
none  be  so  well  heard  as  I."  ^  A  greater  potentate  than  e.ither 
Henry  VIII.  or  Surrey  was  hastening  to  declare  a  truce  at  the 
day  she  dated,  November  10 — even  the  wintry  lord  of  storms  and 
snow,  before  whose  breath  the  petty  array  of  human  malice  has 
often  withered  and  fled. 

Margaret's  mediation  was  probably  the  reason  she  was  admit- 
ted to  visit  the  King  her  son  at  Stirling,  from  whence  her  next 
letters  are  dated.  Albany  knew  not  quite  as  well  as  our  readers 
the  species  of  dispatches  she  wrote  by  every  post  to  England. 
The  following  letter  to  Surrey  was  penned  by  her  during  the  week 
in  November  which  the  indulgent  Regent  permitted  her  to  spend 
with  King  James  in  Stirling  Castle  : — 

"  And  as  touching  the  King  my  son,  thanked  be  God  he  is  in  good  health, 
and  I  am  with  him  in  Stirhng,  and  think  not  to  be  far  from  liim  in  any  dan- 
ger that  may  come,  if  that  I  be  not  put  from  him  by  force.  I  beseech  God 
if  that  you  could  see  him,  so  that  nobody  knew  of  you  but  I,  and  then  I  trust 
you  would  be  right  well  contented  with  him." 

Very  dangerous  would  such  visit  have  proved  in  the  hostile 
towers  of  Stirling. 

"  And  also,  wit  you,  my  Lord  Surrey,  the  Governor  Albany  is  in  Edin- 
burgh, and  I  saw  him  not  since  he  came  from  the  unhonest  journey :  but  he 
thinks  no  shame  of  it,  for  he  makes  it  his  excuse  that  the  Lords  would  not 
pass  into  Enghind  with  him,  and  says  they  would  have  sold  him  in  England ; 
and  therefore  he  hath  begun  the  Parliament  this  Tuesday." 

Again  the  Q,ueen  repeats  her  soliciting  clause,  urging  her  usual 
plea,  that,  if  she  is  not  paid  as  the  spy  of  the  English,  she  must 
accept  whatsoever  the  Scotch  would  give  her  ;  when,  in  good 
truth,  she  obtained  all  she  could  from  both  sides. 

"  Wherefore,  I  pray  you,  my  lord,  to  do  so  to  me  that  I  need  not  to  set  by 

'  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  56. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  169 

(care  for)  the  displeasure  of  the  Duke  of  Albany  ;  or  else  I  must  be  content 
to  follow  his  pleasure,  whether  it  be  against  my  son  or  not.  For  there  is 
none  here  that  will  contrary  his  pleasure,  suppose  he  do  never  so  much 
evil.  And  you  well  know,  my  lord,  that  my  living  that  1  should  live  upon 
is  here,  and  he  may  do  with  it  what  he  pleases.  And  how  I  have  been 
treated  since  my  last  coming  out  of  England  is  well  known,  and  have  lived, 
not  lilie  a  princess,  but  a  sober  woman,  and  fain  perforce  to  take  any  money 
the  Duke  of  Albany  would  give  me,  as  I  have  written  before,  and  gotten 
no  answer." 

dueen  Margaret,  at  the  same  time,  continued  her  endeavors 
to  be  divorced  from  Angus,  in  the  expectation  of  marrying  the 
Regent.  Whether  she  would  have  agreed  with  him  better  than 
with  her  other  husbands,  can  not  now  be  known  :  it  is  not  likely  ; 
for  his  temper  was  fiery,  and  exhaled  itself  in  eccentricities  almost 
as  amusing  as  the  treatment  George  11.  used  to  bestow  on  his  hat 
and  wig.  "  If  any  thing  goes  contrarious  to  the  mind  and  pleas- 
ure of  the  Regent  Albany,"  wrote  Lord  Surrey  to  Wolsey,^  Oc- 
tober, 1523,  "it  is  his  customar}'^  manner  to  snatch  his  bonnet 
suddenly  off  his  head,  and  throw  it  in  the  fire.  No  man  dare 
take  it  out,  and  there  it  is  burnt.  My  Lord  Dacre  doth  affirm 
that,  at  his  last  being  in  Scotland,  the  Regent  did  burn  above  a 
dozen  bonnets  after  that  manner." 

Then,  again,  Margaret,  who  had  persecuted,  betrayed,  and  re- 
viled the  Regent  for  some  months,  seems  as  if  nothing  Avould 
content  her  but  his  utter  ruin.  In  regard  to  the  caprice  which 
is  usually  quoted  as  the  motive  for  Margaret's  actions,  it  evidently 
was  a  stronger  feeling  which  made  her  selfish  spirit  blaze  out 
into  all  the  murderous  violence  of  Tudor  wrath,  at  the  least 
matter  that  irritated  her  at  this  crisis.  It  has  been  mentioned 
that  she  was  jealous  of  Lord  Fleming's  sister  and  the  handsome 
Regent,  and  this  passion  worked  with  all  the  headlong  fury  which 
afterward  inspired  her  brother  when  the  same  torch  had  lit  up 
the  evil  now  dormant  in  his  heart.  Margaret,  in  the  following 
letter  to  Surrey,  accuses  Lord  Fleming  of  the  murder  of  his  wife 
Euphemia  and  her  two  sisters,  one  of  whom  was  supposed  to  be 
the  first  wife  of  King  James  IV.  ;  she  likewise  accuses  Lord 
Fleming's  sister  of  being  the  Regent's  mistress.  Nor  is  the  fury 
of  the  dueen  confined  to  the  Fleming  family  and  the  Regent ; 
a  suspicion  existed  that  the  Prioress  of  Coldstream — whose 
dangerous  locality  on  the  Borders  made  her  the  friend  and  in- 
i  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  f.  315. 

vo^.  I. — H 


170  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

telligencer  now  of  the  English,  now  of  the  Scotch — navigating 
her  affairs,  poor  woman,  so  as  to  avoid  the  rocks  and  whirlpools 
that  beset  her  on  either  side — had  betrayed  some  of  Margaret's 
correspondence.  Surrey  expressed  his  doubts  of  the  Prioress's 
sincerity  ;  and  Margaret,  though  never  actively  cruel  before,  only 
callous  and  selfish,  now  in  her  demoniac  mood  urges  Surrey,  if 
the  Prioress  fails  in  aught,  "  to  cause  her  place  to  be  burnt," 
without  having  the  least  pity  for  the  numerous  helpless  females 
who  would  be  destroyed  in  a  place  of  hospitality  for  the  destitute 
in  a  rugged  and  savage  country.  Margaret  was  in  a  thorough 
state  of  exasperation  when  she  wrote  this  letter,  dated  Novem- 
ber 24.  She  had  again  been  permitted  to  visit  her  son  at  Stir- 
ling ;  she  then  and  there  avowed  her  intention  to  remain  with 
him  in  the  royal  fortress  till  put  out  by  force. 

"  Thus,  my  Lord,  I  see  great  appearance  of  evil  and  danger  to  the  King 
my  son's  person,  when  they  that  be  true  lords  to  the  King  be  put  from  him, 
and  them  that  love  the  Governor  (Albany)  put  to  him,  and  that  I  know 
perfectly  would  have  my  son  destroyed  for  pleasure  of  the  Duke ;  and, 
most  suspicion  of  all,  they  will  not  that  I  remain  with  him,  but  to  come 
and  go." 

Here  it  is  needful  again  to  recall  the  horrid  tragedies  which 
had  taken  place  in  Margaret's  own  family,  in  order  to  plead  her 
excuse  for  charges  which  seem  monstrously  wicked  to  those  who 
know,  by  the  common  current  of  events,  that  James  V.  grew  up, 
and  thus  proved  that  his  guardian  was  faithful  to  his  trust.  Still 
dueen  Margaret  knew  not  the  future,  and  she  had  not  mag- 
nanimity sufficient  to  reason,  that,  if  Albany  had  been  false- 
hearted, the  young  King  would  have  vanished  from  human  ken 
soon  after  his  brother  the  Duke  of  Ross  died  ;  but  as  he  had 
been  suffered  to  survive  the  natural  infirmities  of  childhood,  the 
inference  might  be  very  fairly  drawn  that  no  harm  was  intended 
against  the  royal  boy. 

"  As  yet,"  she  continues,  "  I  am  here  with  my  son,  and  shall  remain  de- 
spite of  tlie  Governor  (Albany),  without  that  he  take  me  away  perforce. 
And  therefore,  my  Lord,  for  God's  sake  look  well  upon  this  matter,  for  now 
is  time  when  such  rules  be  begun  for  the  utter  destruction  of  my  son,  and 
that  you  will  see  some  remedy  to  this,  and  to  advertise  me  what  I  shall  do ; 
an'  if  I  and  the  Governor  discord,  what  sltall  (will)  be  your  part  to  me,  and 
what  help  I  shall  get  to  bear  me  forth  ?  For  he  (Albany)  and  I  shall  not 
long  agree  upon  this. 

"  I  set  not  by  nothing  in  Scotland,  an'  the  King,  my  son,  be  not  well." 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  171 

As  before,  Q.ueen  Margaret  would  have  left  young  James  V, 
to  fulfill  any  destiny  the  Regent  chose,  if  she  could  have  induced 
the  English  commander-in-chief  to  have  abducted  her  over  the 
Border,  and  restored  her  to  the  pleasures  and  luxuries  of  her 
brother's  court.  Perhaps  Surrey,  and  Dacre  as  well,  had  had 
more  trouble  and  perplexity  than  either  honor  or  profit  from  her 
previous  visit,  as  they  were  in  no  haste  to  avail  themselves  of 
her  repeated  proposals  for  escaping  to  them. 

"  Therefore,  my  Lord,"  she  proceeds,  "  1  pray  you,  let  me  come  to  that 
realm  (England),  and  devise  the  best  way  for  me,  and  the  King  my  son,  as 
my  trust  is  in  you ;  and  be  not  blinded  no  more  with  the  Duke  of  Albany's 
falsehood,  and  make  no  truce  while  this  be  (to  be)  remedied,  for  no  sending 
"without  I  send  you  a  token. 

"  And  haste  me  your  counsel,  I  pray  you ;  and  cause  the  Prioress  of  Cold- 
stream to  send  surely  (safely)  the  answer  to  this  bill,  and  send  her  word 
what  you  will  do  for  her  to  keep  her  from  trouble,  if  so  she  be  true  to  me. 
For  there  is  none  that  may  so  well  and  surely  as  she  may  convey  letters 
betwixt ;  and  if  she  fails  to  do  it,  that  you  will  cause  her  place  to  be  burnt. 
And  this  I  pray  you  fail  not  to  do,  and  God  keep  you !" 

A  benediction  which  certainly  appears  singularly  out  of  place. 
The  Q/Ueen  was  certainly  in  a  fierce  unfeminine  humor  when 
she  wrote  this  letter.  The  reason  of  her  exasperation  appears 
as  she  concludes  : — 

"  And  God  send  your  grace  to  help  my  son  out  of  his  enemies'  hands, 
which  he  will  be  daily  in,  now  when  these  persons  be  put  to  him.  For  the 
Lord  Fleming,  for  evil-will  that  he  had  to  his  Avife,  caused  to  poison  three 
sisters,  one  of  them  his  wife ;  and  tliis  is  known  of  truth  in  Scotland.  An'  if 
this  (man)  be  good  to  put  to  the  King  my  son,  God  knoweth  !  And  another 
thing  I  know  perfectly,  that  he  would  have  ray  son  dead.  The  Governor 
Albany  and  the  Earl  of  Murray  like  such,  for  the  Governor  hath  his  sister 
now  to  his  paramour !" 

Thus,  it  is  apparent  that  personal  jealousy  inspired  the  tone 
of  this  remarkable  letter,  and  turned  all  the  loving  communica- 
tion between  Q.ueen  Margaret  and  the  handsome  Regent,  which 
had  excited  the  angry  comments  of  Lord  Dacre  and  the  public 
remonstrances  of  his  master,  into  wrath  and  acerbity.^  Her 
suspicions  of  foul  dealing  to  her  son,  and  her  murderous  accusa- 
tions of  Lord  Fleming,  may  all  be  attributable  to  the  fact,  which 

1  The  letter  is  dated  Stirling,  on  St.  Catherme's  Eve,  being  Nov.  24, 
1623. 


172  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

bursts  out,  if  not  in  her  postscript,  according  to  the  usual  rule,  at 
least  as  the  conclusion  of  the  epistle — -Lord  Fleming's  sister  had 
stolen  the  heart  of  Albany.  No  very  reputable  prize  for  any 
lady,  as  he  was  yet  a  married  man.  Two  days  afterward  Glueen 
Margaret  wrote  a  reproachful  letter  to  the  Regent,  in  which  she 
dwells  much  on  her  attachment  to  the  French  interest,  and  on 
her  fidelity  to  Albany  and  Scotland,  as  especial  virtues  in  her 
conduct  and  character.  She  was  still  with  her  son,  although 
murmuring  perpetually  at  the  possibility  of  being  deprived  of  his 
company  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Council. 

The  Regent  arrived  at  Stirling,  December  9,  for  the  purpose 
of  examining  into  the  royal  discontents.  Before  the  Privy 
Council  convened,  he  had  a  private  interview  with  the  King  and 
Clueen  of  Scotland.  He  approached  her  deferentially,  excusing 
himself,  lamenting  "that  she  was  displeased  at  him." 

The  dueen  answered,  "  I  have  cause,  as  further  I  will  show 
before  you  and  the  Lords." 

The  Privy  Council  sat  the  next  day.  Glueen  Margaret  was 
present,  and  made  a  speech  of  some  length.  She  complained 
"  that  the  new  custodians  positively  refused  to  undertake  the 
charge  their  country  had  confided  to  them  if  she  had  access  to 
her  son  at  pleasure."  And  very  much  in  the  right  they  were, 
as  every  person  must  agree  who  has  read  her  correspondence  of 
that  autumn. 

It  would  have  been  well  if  Q.ueen  Margaret  had  had  some 
other  reporter  of  her  speech  to  the  Privy  Council  than  herself; 
for  she  adds,  "  And  I  discharged  me  of  many  other  sharp  words 
that  were  too  long  to  write." 

The  Duke  of  Albany,  after  the  Glueen's  speech,  bluntly  told 
the  Lords  of  the  Privy  Council,  "  that  if  they  would  not  stand 
to  what  they  had  agreed  on,  the  responsibility  must  rest  on  them 
for  any  evil  that  ensued."  He  sought  an  interview  with  the 
young  King,  in  the  presence  of  Glueen  Margaret,  on  the  succeed- 
ing morning,  December  11th.  "  He  came  to  the  King,  my  son, 
himself,"  says  Margaret,  "  and  desired  that  he  might  speak  with 
him  and  me.  Then  he  showed  to  the  King  and  me  the  order 
that  was  devised  by  the  Lords  and  him,  touching  such  persons  as 
were  to  be  about  him  (the  King),  and  prayed  him  to  be  contented 
therewith."  The  young  King  said,  "If  it  was  for  his  good,  he 
would  be  contented." 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  173 

Margaret  answered,  "I  have  shown  my  mind  before  him  and 
the  Lords ;   and  therefore  I  can  say  no  more  now." 

She  had  been  warned  that  Albany  had  summoned  eight  hun- 
dred of  his  French  auxiliaries  to  take  the  King  away  from 
her,  to  some  abiding-place  on  the  western  coast  of  Scotland. 
"  Wherefore,"  she  adds,  "  to  eschew  more  evil,  I  thought,  for  that 
time,  I  would  not  contrary  them  (contradict  them)  as  to  the 
Lords  that  should  be  about  him."  At  a  sitting  of  the  Privy 
Council,  which  immediately  followed  the  interview  of  Albany 
with  his  royal  ward,  the  Glueen  made  profession  before  all  the 
Lords  thereof,  to  the  effect — "That,  if  it  was  for  the  good  of  the 
King  her  son's  person,  she  would  be  contented  with  their  arrange- 
ments; and  that  she  would  be  ane  good  Scotsivoman.'''  But 
immediately  after  she  retired  from  the  coiincil-board,  she  had  an 
instrument  drawn  up  and  witnessed,  to  the  effect  "that  she 
revoked  any  thing  that  she  did  at  this  time,  for  it  was  to  eschew 
a  greater  inconvenience."  When  Glueen  Margaret  had  with 
drawn  from  the  Privy  Council,  the  Duke  of  Albany  informed  the 
Lords  "  that  his  ships  were  ready,  and  he  desired  their  consent  to 
pass  to  France  without  returning  more."  His  wish  was  earnestly 
opposed  by  the  Privy  Council ;  with  difficulty  he  was  prevailed 
on  to  stay  and  hold  his  Christmas  at  Edinburgh,  and  "to  bide" 
till  Candlemas  in  Scotland. 

Margaret  acknowledged  to  Lord  Surrey  the  receipt  of  "  two 
hundred  angel  nobles"  from  her  brother,  Henry  VIIL  A  small 
Bum  it  certainly  was,  and  very  hardly  extracted,  after  months  of 
pertinacious  begging.  The  dueen  took  care  to  mention  the 
opposite  bidding  of  the  King  of  France,  of  five  thousand  crowns 
for  her  interest  and  good-will,  which,  according  to  her  account, 
she  had  disinterestedly  refused.  But  assuredly,  whosoever  spent 
money  in  bribing  dueen  Margaret,  made  foolish  bargains,  as  her 
double-minded  letters  can  testify. 

The  Duke  of  Albany's  wife  departed  this  life  about  the  com- 
mencement of  the  year  1524.^  Whether  this  circumstance  made 
Glueen  Margaret  more  than  usually  gracious  to  the  Regent  is  not 
clearly  defined  ;  or  whether  the  disbursement  of  the  five  thousand 
French  crowns  had  effected  the  pacification,  can  not  be  insisted 

^  Pinkerton.  He  speaks  without  any  certain  authority  ;  but  the  death  of 
the  Duchess  of  Albany  is  mentioned  in  the  Memoirs  of  Martin  du  Bellay  as 
occurring  about  that  time^ 


174  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Oil ;  but  she  was  again  on  very  intimate  terms  with  him  on  his 
return  to  Edinburgh,  after  the  Border  campaign.  She  met  him 
at  the  gatehouse  of  Holyrood  Palace,  and  great  professions  of 
kindness  were  exchanged  on  both  sides.'  Throughout  the  winter 
of  1523-4,  Lord  Dacre  was  incHned  to  renew  his  scandalous 
imputations  on  Q.ueen  Margaret's  conduct  with  Albany.  The 
Duke  of  Norfolk  was  better  informed.  He  complained  of  one 
Harry  Stuart,  a  second  son  of  the  Lord  of  Avondale,  a  relative  of 
the  royal  family,  but  a  soldier  of  fortune,  who  had  then  a  place 
in  the  royal  household.^  In  her  despair  of  Albany's  intentions  to 
make  her  his  wife,  Q,ueen  Margaret  bestowed  some  favor  on 
Harry  Stuart,  enough  to  raise  the  indignation  of  the  Duke  of 
Norfolk,  who  was  no  other  than  the  lately  quoted  correspondent 
of  Glueen  Margaret,  the  son  of  the  Surrey  of  Flodden  Field,  and 
the  uncle  of  Anne  Boleyn. 

Margaret  passed  the  winter  and  spring  agitating  her  divorce 
from  Angus ;  and  in  alternate  hopes  and  fears  as  to  whether 
Albany  M^ould  marry  her.  "This  present  hour,"  writes  Lord 
Dacre  to  Wolsey,^  "  I  am  apprised  by  my  secret  espial  out  of 
Scotland,  that  the  Lords  continued  together  all  Whitsun-week 
in  Edinburgh  ;  and  were  sitting  in  the  Tolbooth  the  same  Mon- 
day, Tuesday,  Wednesday,  and  Thursday  last,  in  council.  The 
Duke  entreated  the  Q,ueen  '  to  hold  the  young  King  in  the  Castle 
of  Striveling  (Stirling),  and  in  the  bounds  devised  for  him,  ad- 
juring her  not  to  confederate  with  her  brother,  Henry  VIII.," 
Margaret's  answer  showed  her  sullen  displeasure  at  Albany's 
departure.  "  To  which  desires,"  continues  the  spy,  "  the  Q,ueen 
denied  him  in  part,  saying — '  If  he  yode  away,  she  must  needs  do 
the  best  she  could  for  herself.'  "  In  regard  to  the  proposal  of 
Albany  to  keep  the  young  King  in  his  regal  fortress  of  Stirling, 
she  condescended  not  to  reply,  meaning  to  act  "  directly  con- 
trarious,"  according  to  her  natural  perversity ;  but  the  Lords 
sitting  there,  at  council,  observed,  "  They  would  do  their  best  to 
keep  the  King's  Grace  in,  so  far  as  they  might  solicit  him."  The 
intention  of  Albany  appears  to  have  been  entirely  for  the  benefit 
of  his  young  kinsman's  character  and  education.  It  will  be  soon 
shown  by  the  testimony  of  Sir  David  Lindsay,  the  young  King's 

^  Pinkerton.  ^  State  Papers. 

^  Cott.  MS.,  B.  xi.  f.  246.  Printed  in  the  original  orthography,  Ellis's 
Letters,  first  series,  vol.  i.  p.  241. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  175 

faithful  chamberlain,  what  wild  work  Margaret  made  by  her 
willful  contradiction  of  the  Regent's  wise  injunction.  The  Duke 
then  expressed  his  desire  to  the  assembled  Lords  "that  Q,ueen 
Margaret  should  be  obeyed  in  all  her  rights."  The  Lords 
ansAvered  and  said,  "  All  the  pleasure  and  service  they  might  do 
should  be  at  her  commandment."  ^ 

Q,ueen  Margaret's  very  ungracious  reply  did  not  in  the  least 
impair  the  knightly  courtesy  with  which  the  Regent,  her  kins- 
man, still  treated  her.  After  taking  leave  of  all  the  Scottish  lords 
assembled  for  that  purpose  at  the  Tolbooth,  he  rode  the  same 
night  to  Linlithgow ;  he  proceeded  on  the  Saturday  to  Stirling, 
and  remained  there  all  the  Sunday,  where  he  privately  bade  fare- 
well to  Margaret  and  the  young  Sovereign,  for  whose  welfare  he 
had  made  great  sacrifices.  The  Regent  arrived  on  the  Tuesday 
at  Dumbarton ;  where,  the  wind  serving,  he  embarked  "  and 
sailed  out  of  sight  forthwith ;"  and  that  worthy  person,  the 
"  secret  espial,"  assured  Dacre,  "  that  if  there  were  any  return  of 
him,  he  would  certify  of  the  same."  ^ 

But  there  was  no  return  of  him.  The  death  of  Agnes  of 
Auvergne,  his  richly  endowed  wife,  made  a  great  diflerence  in 
the  revenues  of  the  Scottish  Prince,  who  well  knew,  by  experience, 
how  useless  it  was  to  return  empty-handed.  The  ruinous  cam- 
paigns of  Francis  L,  ending  in  defeat  and  captivity  at  Pavia, 
stopped  the  source  of  supplies  which  Albany  had  hitherto  drawn 
from  France.  Above  all,  the  prospect  of  some  species  of  divorce, 
which  Glueen  Margaret  expected  to  rid  her  of  Angus,  must  have 
alarmed  the  Regent,  lest  she  actually  would  have  been  at  liberty 
to  claim,  on  honor,  the  hand  that  report  had  so  often  bestowed 
on  her.  Margaret  Tudor,  free  to  contract  lawful  matrimony  for 
the  third  time,  was  as  formidable  an  object  to  John  of  Albany, 
as  her  brother,  Henry  YIIL,  was  some  years  afterward  to  all  the 
unmarried  Princesses  in  Europe.  Scarcely  had  the  Regent 
Albany  bade  his  last  farev/ell  to  the  Scottish  shores,  when  Q,ueen 
Margaret  hastened  to  disobey  his  earnest  injunctions.  She  broke 
into  the  peaceful  and  virtuous  seclusion  at  Stirling  Castle,  where 
her  young  son  was  successfully  pursuing  his  studies  under  the 
regular  tuition  of  Gavin  Dunbar,  and  the  admirable  influences  of 
David  Lindsay. 

^  Cott.  MS.,  B.  xi.  f.  246. 

^  Dacre  to  Wolsey,  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  83. 


176  MARGAIIET     TUDOR, 

One  fortnight  alter  the  Regent's  departure,  the  Q.ueen  under- 
took the  farce  of  a  pilgrimage  to  St.  Ninians,  on  the  Galloway 
coast,  where,  in  the  middle  of  June,  she  met  a  convention  of  the 
lords  of  her  faction,  who  promised  assistance  in  her  wise  plan  of 
setting  her  son  at  liherty  ;  meantime,  she  continued  to  make  the 
noble  boy  wild  for  his  freedom  and  the  assumption  of  his  regal 
power.  But  Margaret  scarcely  had  had  time  to  congratulate 
herself  on  her  own  undisputed  possession  of  the  dignity  of  Regent 
(which  Albany  left  entirely  in  her  hands),  when  she  had  reason 
to  be  alarmed  concerning  one  from  whose  presence  she  had  been 
for  some  time  released — even  her  own  detested  spouse,  the  Earl 
of  Angus,  who  had  escaped  from  the  honorable  exile  in  France, 
for  which  the  good-natured  Regent  had  commuted  his  offenses, 
and  had  been  for  some  months  entertained  by  Henry  VIII.  with 
favor.  Henry  deliberated  setting  loose  his  guest  just  as  Glueen 
Margaret  imagined  that  all  matters  were  proceeding  according  to 
her  wish.  She  renewed  her  vehement  complaints  concerning 
Angus  in  her  letters  from  Stirling  to  her  brother,^  July,  1524, 
commencing  her  remonstrances  in  this  strain, — 

"As  to  my  part," she  says  in  her  letter,  "  your  Grace  sal  find  no  fault, but 
I  am  a  vhaman  (woman),  and  may  do  little  but  by  friends. 

"  Also,  dearest  brother,  I  have  seen  your  writing  touching  my  Lord  of 
Angus,  which,  as  your  Grace  writes,  is  in  your  realm,  and  that  ye  purpose 
to  send  him  here  shortly,  and  that  ye  find  him  right  wise,  and  hath  ruled 
him  well,  and  that  he  hath  desired  that  a  peace  may  be  between  these  two 
realms,  and  that  he  will  do  his  labor  and  diligence  to  the  same,  with  many 
other  good  words  of  him,  praying  me  to  have  him  in  my  favor,  and  that 
he  is  well-minded  of  me,  and  beareth  me  great  love  and  favor.  Dearest 
brother,  as  to  my  Lord  of  Angus  and  me,  when  your  Grace  desireth  me  to 
take  him  into  my  favor,  as  yet  he  hath  not  shown,  since  his  departing  out  of 
Scotland,  that  he  desireth  my  good-will  and  favor,  neither  by  writing  nor 
word.  But  now  he  hath  desired  your  Grace  to  write  for  him  to  me,  knowing 
■well  that  there  is  none  that  I  will  do  so  mickle  for  as  for  your  Grace.  But 
I  trust,  dearest  brother  the  King,  that  your  Grace  will  not  desire  me  to  do 
nothing  that  may  be  hurt  to  me  your  sister,  nor  that  may  be  occasion  to  hold 
me  from  the  King  my  son. 

"  I  beseech  your  Grace  pardon  me  of  my  evil  hand  (bad  writing),  for  I  am 
something  not  well  disposed  (indisposed),  and  therefore  I  have  caused  my 
hand  to  be  copied,  hi  adventure  (in  case)  your  Grace  could  not  read  my  evil 
hand,  and  God  preserve  you.     Written  July  14." 

But  the  lady's  mind  more  particularly  appears  in  her  postscript, 
1  Margaret  to  Henry  VIIL     State  Papers,  vol.  iv,  p.  81. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  177 

which  shows  that  she  bears  strong  memory  of  the  chasms  the 
Earl's  rapacity  had  made  in  her  jointure, — 

"  Dearest  brother,  please  your  Grace  touching  my  Lord  of  Angus  coming 
here,  I  would  beseech  your  Grace  to  be  well  advised  in  the  same  as  I  have 
written  of  before  and  as  touching  my  part,  if  he  put  hand  to  my  gonrouffe 
(jointure)  I  will  not  be  contented  therewith,  for  T  have  but  right  sober  thing 
(moderate  means)  to  find  myself  with,  and  hath  shown  your  Grace  that 
divers  times,  and  got  but  little  remedy.  Wherefore,  now,  an'  I  be  troubled 
with  the  Earl  of  Angus,  it  is  your  Grace  that  doth  it,  and  then  I  will  be  con- 
strained to  look  for  other  help,  for  I  will  not  lot  him  trouble  me  in  my  living, 
as  he  hath  done  in  times  past. 

(Signed)         "  Your  humble  sister,         Margaret." 

The  oft-repeated  threat  that  Margaret  must  look  for  other  help 
was  now  of  no  avail,  and  was  laughed  at  by  Henry  VIII.  and  his 
council.  Francis  I.  was  a  captive,  and  Albany,  with  the  most 
disinterested  fidelity,  was  carrying  on  a  dashing  guerilla  warfare 
for  him  almost  to  the  gates  of  E,ome.^  Both  Albany  and  his  royal 
friend  had  ceased  to  be  alarming  to  Margaret's  "  dearest  brother 
the  King."  Though  Albany  had  not  given  up  all  love  for  Scot- 
land, and  Q,ueen  Margaret  wrote  letters  imploring  his  return, 
nevertheless  the  misfortunes  of  Francis  I.  forever  severed  the  tie 
between  him  and  the  country  whose  scepter  he  had  swayed  so 
long. 

The  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  who  was  Chancellor  of  Scot- 
land, now  became  the  object  of  Q,ueen  Margaret's  especial  revil- 
ings,  because  he  had  opposed  himself  to  what  he  terms  "  the  young 
King's  erection,"  being  her  old  foolish  plan  of  taking  the  boy  from 
his  studies,  and  giving  him  an  unwholesome  degree  of  liberty.  It 
was  remarkable  that  her  alarm  relative  to  the  return  of  her  hus- 
band did  not  produce  some  alteration  in  her  plots  and  plans  re- 
garding her  son.  But  of  the  result  of  her  scheme  of  interrupting 
his  education,  she  had  not  an  idea.  Consequently,  the  King  was 
given  a  very  evil  degree  of  freedom  in  August,  1524,  a  few  weeks 
after  the  Hegent  had  placed  before  the  Q,ueen  and  the  national 
council,  solemnly  assembled,  the  heinous  folly  of  such  proceeding, 
and  the  great  injury  it  woul4  do  to  the  tender  boy.  What  cared 
Margaret  ?    Her  selfish  policy  required  that  she  should  hold  pos- 

1  See  Historical  Letters,  edited  by  Sir  H.  ElHs.  Second  Series.  Martin 
du  Bellay,  Brantome,  and  all  the  French  claroniclers  of  that  era,  speak  with 
admiration  of  Albany's  personal  conduct  at  tlus  terrible  juncture  for  France. 


178  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

session  of  her  son's  person,  knowing  that  the  Scottish  people  at 
large  would  follow  whosoever  had  power  over  their  young  King, 
even  as  the  bee-master  is  accompanied  by  the  whole  hive  when 
he  carries  the  royal  bee  about  him. 

Margaret  had  many  undertakings  to  fulfill  on  which  she  had 
fixed  her  headstrong  inclinations,  and  M^hich  she  fancied  would 
be  conducive  to  her  happiness.  There  was  her  divorce  from 
Angus  on  the  point  of  declaration.  Out  of  pique  for  the  desertion 
of  Albany,  she  determined  to  marry  a  new  husband,  the  young, 
handsome  Harry  Stuart,  already  mentioned,  whom,  perhaps,  she 
would  not  have  raised  to  the  rather  undesirable  distinction  of  her 
husband,  if  the  Scottish  Regent  had  been  kinder.  Lord  Dacre 
was  completely  exasperated  at  the  proceedings  of  Glueen  Mar- 
garet ;  he  could  not  control  his  aversion,  even  when  his  expres- 
sions militated  against  the  interest  of  his  party  and  country. 
Margaret,  in  return,  told  tales  to  her  formidable  brother  of  his 
Lord  Warden's  contumacious  expressions,  not  only  against  her- 
self, but  against  all  female  royalty  for  her  sake.  These  are  her 
words, — "  Also  I  complain  to  the  King  my  brother  of  what  my 
Lord  Dacre  does  and  says  to  my  hurt,  for  he  says  to  Scottish  folk, 
*  that  he  marvels  that  they  ivill  let  any  woman  have  authority, 
and  specially  ME.'  duilk  words  should  come  of  others,  not  of 
Englishmen.  For,  the  more  honor  I  get,  England  will  have  the 
•more  ;  and  such  words  as  these  may  do  me  mickle  ill.  There- 
fore I  desire  remedy  to  be  found  in  that  behalf"  ^ 

Henry  VIIL,  with  a  wonderful  exertion  of  brotherly  kindness, 
as  Margaret  thought,  had  enabled  her  to  raise  a  guard  of  two 
hundred  mercenary  soldiers,  had  given  her  a  month's  pay  for 
them,  and  the  promise  of  further  payments.  This  aid,  Mar- 
garet imagined,  would  oblige  all  events  to  run  smoothly  for  her ; 
as  the  barons  of  Scotland  would  scarcely  be  able  to  master  regu- 
larly trained  soldiers,  this  guard,  ensconced  within  the  walls  of  a 
fortress  like  Stirling,  would  secure  her  son  to  her ;  and  the  pos- 
session of  her  son  would  give  her  the  absolute  power  in  Scotland 
for  which  she  had  sighed  and  striven  for  long  years.  With  great 
satisfaction  she  thus  expressed  herself  concerning  them  in  one  of 
her  letters  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,'^ — 

1  State  Papers. — Letter  of  Queen  Margaret  to  the  English  Council,  vol. 
iv.  p.  118.     At  Edinburgh,  Aug.  31,  1524. 

2  Oott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  fol.  402. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  179 

"  I  sent  Patrick  Sinclair  to  you,  my  Lord,  touching  the  money  that  the 
King's  Grace  my  brother  ordered  to  the  King  my  son  for  two  hundred  men 
to  be  about  his  person,  -which  money  he  hath  not  gotten.  Wherefore  I  de- 
sire perfitely  to  know  if  this  money  shall  be  furnished  or  not,  and  thereupon 
I  send  this  bearer  to  know  what  we  shall  trust  to ;  whereof,  my  Lord,  I 
pray  you  let  me  be  advertised.  I  trust  the  King's  Grace  my  brother  will 
not  change  his  good  mind  to  the  King  my  son  and  me,  but  help  us  to  bring 
our  matters  to  a  good  end.  Suppose  it  be  costly  to  his  Grace,  it  will  be 
steedable  {available)  hereafter  to  his  Grace  (Henry  VIIL)  Let  this  said 
money  be  sent  with  this  bearer,  to  keep  the  two  hundred  men  about  the 
King  my  son,  these  men  to  be  chosen  as  /think  best  for  the  surety  of  the 
King  my  son,  and  not  to  be  chosen  by  other  men's  advices 

"  And  as  to  the  money  that  his  Grace  has  given  to  furnish  tlie  two  hun- 
dred men,  I  assure  you,  my  Lord,  it  hath  done  great  good  to  the  King  my 
son,  and  hath  hindered  much  evil  to  be  done,  and  it  is  not  a  month  since  it 
began." 

As  Henry  VIIL  advanced  to  his  sister  only  a  month's  pay  at 
a  time  for  this  guard,  the  gist  of  the  Q^ueen's  letter  is,  that  the 
next  month's  allowance  may  be  advanced  rather  before  the  day 
of  payment. 

"  And  whereas  the  said  money  is  spent  before  the  month,  it  is  to  be  con- 
sidered that  at  that  time  the  expenses  would  be  greater  than  at  another 
time,  for  we  had  great  matters  ado,  but  the  expense  may  be  holden  in  again 
as  we  think  needful.  And  thus,  my  Lord,  I  trust  you  will  send  the  money 
by  this  bearer,  and  shall  order  it  to  be  well  ordered  to  the  weal  and  surety 
(safety)  of  the  King  my  son." 

Glueen  Margaret  was  at  Edinburgh  when  she  wrote  this  letter, 
which  perhaps  dates  about  September,  1524.  Although  in  view 
of  the  attainment  of  all  her  projects,  the  alarm  was  renewed  in. 
her  mind  that  her  brother  meant  to  set  her  repudiated  husband, 
Angus,  loose  in  Scotland  ;  for,  as  already  related,  Henry  VIIL 
had  invited  him  to  change  his  residence  from  France  to  England 
in  1523,  but  he  had  not  yet  been  permitted  to  approach  his  court. 
Impelled  by  the  fear  excited  by  the  rumor  of  Angus's  return, 
dueen  Margaret  added  this  postscript  to  her  letter,^ — "  Touching 
my  Lord  of  Angus,  I  pray  you  to  keep  promise  with  me,  for  I 
trust  the  King's  Grace,  my  brother,  will  not  fail  in  that  he  hath 
promised  me  ;  but,  as  yet,  I  hear  the  Earl  of  Angus  is  not  yet 
past  hope  of  the  court,  whereof  I  marvel." 

The  Gtueen  means  hope  of  coming  to  the  court  of  Henry  VIIL 
*  Cott.  MS.,  Calig.  B.  vi.  fol.  402. 


180  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Angus  had  the  daughter  with  him  which  (dueen  Margaret  had 
borne  him  at  Harbottle  in  the  autumn  of  1515.  The  child  was 
the  niece  of  the  mighty  EngUsh  King,  and,  in  the  third  degree, 
heiress  to  the  crown  of  England,  if  (iueen  Margaret's  scheme  of 
divorce  from  the  father  was  nullified.  Angus,  who  was  nearly 
as  selfish  as  his  wife,  knew  the  value  of  his  daughter  as  a  link 
of  intercourse  with  his  redoubtable  brother-in-law,  and  therefore, 
kept  her  by  his  side. 

Reports  now  began  to  reach  King  Henry  that,  since  his  sister's 
disappointment  of  marriage  with  Albany,  it  was  her  intention  to 
bring  forward  as  her  husband,  and  as  the  Keeper  of  the  Seals  of 
all  the  crown-offices  in  Scotland,  young  tiarry  Stuart  of  Avon- 
dale,  whose  name  had  for  some  time  been  connected  disreputably 
with  her  own.  In  the  greatest  indignation  at  this  disgrace  to 
the  royal  families  of  England  and  Scotland,  Henry  VIII.  not  only 
had  received  his  sister's  husband  Angus  at  court,  but  was  pre- 
paring a  disagreeable  surprise  for  her,  which  he  intended  should 
destroy  all  the  fine  plans  she  had  projected  for  her  future  gratifi- 
cation. Without  guessing  the  intentions  of  her  brother,  and 
greatly  exulting  in  the  prospects  before  her,  Glueen  Margaret 
brought  her  son  in  triumph  to  Edinburgh,  August  22,  1524  ;  and, 
convening  the  next  princes  of  the  blood — the  Earl  of  Arran,  the 
Earl  of  Lennox — and  all  the  great  peers,  she  carried  James  Y. 
in  state  to  the  upper  chamber  of  the  Tolbooth,  and  proposed  to 
abrogate  the  authority  of  the  Regent  Albany.^  The  Chancellor 
of  Scotland,  Beton,  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  demurred  to 
ratifying  this  act,  as  he  knew  that  the  Regency  had  been  settled 
on  Albany  until  the  young  King  was  eighteen ;  he  therefore  re- 
fused to  affix  the  Great  Seal  to  the  instrument  restoring  to  the 
Q,ueen  the  regnant  power,  from  which  she  had  deposed  herself 
by  marrying.  Glueen  Margaret  sent  her  favorite,  Harry  Stuart, 
to  deal  with  the  Chancellor  of  Scotland,  who  fled  ;  but  the  young 
guardsman  followed  him  to  his  hiding-place,  tore  the  Great  Seal 
from  him,  and,  by  the  orders  of  his  royal  mistress,  haled  him  to 
prison,  whither  he  conveyed  for  company  the  ]:>ishop  of  Aberdeen, 
another  of  her  opponents." 

The  Duke  of  Norfolk  was  exasperated  at  the  dueen's  des- 
potism.    He  urged  his  royal  master  to  send  forward  Dr.  Magnus, 

^  Perfect  Occurrents,  p.  9. 

a  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  148.    Norfolk  to  Wolsey,  Sept.  1524. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  181 

because,  from  his  admonitions  as  a  priest,  the  Glueen  might 
amend  her  private  life,  as  she  attended  to  no  one  like  him  ;  '  also 
to  send  home  directly  the  Glueen's  husband,  the  Bavl  of  A?tguish. 
He  wrote  to  Wolsey  that  the  young  lieutenant  of  the  Guard, 
Harry  Stuart,  had  in  his  keeping  the  Great  Seal  of  Scotland, 
torn  from  the  Archbishop  Beton,  the  Privy  Seal,  and  another 
called  the  Signet  and  the  Gluarter  Seal ;  and,  as  if  all  these 
charges  were  not  enough,  the  Glueen  had  conferred  on  him  the 
office  of  Lord  Treasurer* — a  curious  accumulation  of  grave 
functions  for  one  young  guardsman.  "  The  grudge,"  continues 
Norfolk,  "  is  universal  against  the  dueen,  as  well  for  that  she 
taketh  so  much  on  herself,  and  is  only  ruled  by  the  Earlof  Arran 
and  this  Harry  ;  as  also  for  her  ungodly  living,  and  for  keeping 
her  husband,  the  Earl  of  Angus,  out  of  the  realm.  Henry 
Stuart,"  presuming  on  dueen  Margaret's  favor,  and  his  command 
as  lieutenant  of  the  royal  life-guard,  "  filled  the  Court  with  his 
swaggering  and  brawling.  He  had  a  desperate  quarrel  with  the 
Glueen's  confidential  equerry,  Patrick  Sinclair ;  but  in  this  dis- 
pute, as  in  every  other,  her  Majesty  partially  espoused  the  cause 
of  Harry  Stuart,  and  gave  '  right  sharp  words'  to  Patrick  Sinclair, 
'  because  he  had  not  brought  her  a  letter  from  the  Duke  of  Nor- 
folk.' "  Margaret  sent  one  of  her  messengers,  whom  she  calls 
"  Jemmy  Dodge"  and  "  Jemmy  Dog,"  to  complain  to  Norfolk, 
who  wrote  thus  to  Wolsey, — "  When  I  heard  of  her  displeasure, 
I  sent  the  said  Jemmy  Dog  to  her  with  a  letter.  I  am  assured 
by  him  she  was  fully  contented  and  satisfied,  which  is  very  diffi- 
cult to  effect."  He  adds,  dryly, — "  Most  specially  if  one  advise 
her  of  that  which  might  promote  her  own  weal,  which  hereafter 
I  shall  forbear  to  do.  And  yet,  if  I  had  not  sent  Patrick  Sinclair 
to  her,  advising  her  in  no  wise  to  suffer  the  young  King  to  go 
from  Edinburgh,  I  believe  her  authority  would  at  this  time  have 
been  right  small." 

Margaret's  unbeloved  spouse  was  excessively  impatient  to  be 
home,  as  soon  as  he  found  that  the  man  of  whom  he  stood  in 
awe,  the  princely  Regent,  had  departed  from  Scotland,  never  more 
to  return.  He  commenced  his  journey  from  London  in  the  first 
days  of  October,  1524  :  he  arrived  at  Brancepeth   on  the    16th 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  148.     Norfolk  to  Wolsey,  Sept.  1524. 
2  Norfolk  to  Wolsey,  Barnard  Castle,  Sept.  14,  1524.    State  Papers,  vol. 
iv.  p.  126. 


182  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

of  that  moiith,  where  he  waited  for  a  favorable  opportunity  to 
appear  among  his  vassals  on  the  other  side  of  the  Border/  The 
rumors  of  his  approach  inspired  the  Glueen's  faction  with  alarm. 
The  Earl  of  Arran,  her  Majesty's  prime-minister,  took  the  liberty 
of  their  mutual  descent  from  the  Beauforts  to  write  a  letter  to 
Henry  VIII.,  setting  forth  the  charms  and  graces  of  the  young 
King  of  Scotland,  his  goodly  "  haviour^''  his  noble  delectable 
form,  his  manly  firm  countenance,  and  other  pre-eminent  beau- 
ties." ^  The  Earl,  who  was  at  Linlithgow,  the  favorite  palace 
of  Q,ueen  Margaret,  and  wrote  under  her  guidance,  finishes  by 
assuring  her  brother,  "  that  if  he  suJETers  the  Earl  of  Angus  to 
re-enter  Scotland,  it  sail  not  only  be  hurtable  and  annoy  the 
Glueen's  Grace,  but  break  the  peace  between  the  realms  of  Eng- 
land and  Scotland,"  Not  the  least  effect  had  all  the  remon- 
strances of  Margaret  and  her  ally  Arran.  Her  husband  was  to 
return  :  such  was  the  will  of  him  who  never  altered  his  mind  on 
any  representation  of  others. 

Margaret  sent  Norfolk  a  present  of  a  hawk,^  with  promise  of 
another  speedily,  thanking  him,  at  the  same  time,  for  the  good 
mind  he  bore  her  ;  but  she  bitterly  lamented  "  her  great  dishon- 
oring" at  the  threatened  return  of  her  husband,  "  Gif  it  be  the 
King's  Grace's  pleasure  to  send  in  the  Earl  of  Angus,"  she  adds ; 
"  yet  he  can  not  cause  me  to  favor  him,  or  to  let  him  be  in  my 
company  I"  She  likewise  sent  one  of  her  hawks  to  Wolsey  ;  but 
she  would  have  spared  her  hawks  and  her  thanks  if  she  could 
have  read  with  us  the  comments  of  Wolsey  and  Norfolk  on  her 
"  evil  life,"  and  their  discussions  on  her  ignorant  tyranny  in  tear- 
ing all  the  seals  from  the  law  dignitaries  of  the  realm,  and  giving 
them  to  the  custody  of  her  swaggering  guardsman,  Harry  of  Avon- 
dale,  Norfolk  was  not  grateful  for  his  hawk.  In  his  next  letter 
to  Wolsey,  he  observes  "  that  (iueen  Margaret  was  marvelous 
willful  against  the  Earl  of  Anguish,  and  that  she  talked  of  throw- 
ing him  into  prison  if  he  ventured  to  enter  Scotland."  *  Wolsey 
calmly  but  dryly  advised  the  sister  of  his  monarch  to  reconsider 
that  determination.     Meantime,  he  charged  Norfolk  not  to  detain 

1  "Wolsey  to  Norfolk,     State  Papers,  vol,  iv.  p.  155. 

2  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  pp.  157,  158.     Arran  to  Henry  VIII.,  Oct.  3,  1224. 

3  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  168.     Margaret  to  Norfolk,  Oct.  6,  1524. 
*  Wolsey  to  Norfolk,  vol,  iv.  p.  181,  Oct.  10,  1524. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  183 

Angus  on  any  consideration,  but  to  "  speed  him  onward  across 
the  Border." 

The  Douglas  faction  were  much  elated  at  his  approach,  and 
they  became  extremely  insolent  and  overbearing.  Their  first 
exploit  was  by  no  means  offensive  to  Margaret,  though  an  alarm- 
ing breach  of  the  law  ;  for  Douglas,  Lord  of  Drommellar,  slew 
the  Lord  Fleming  on  the  threshold  of  St.  Giles's  Church,  Edin- 
burgh. Fleming  was  the  nobleman  whom  the  Glueen  had  par- 
ticularly reviled  in  many  of  her  letters,  as  the  murderer  of  the 
Drummond  sisters.  Lord  Fleming  was  the  intimate  friend  of 
Albany  ;  his  son  Malcolm  was  taken,  and  detained  prisoner  by 
the  homicide.  Such  was  the  bad  beginning  of  the  Douglas  dom- 
ination. 

The  Glueen  of  Scotland,  about  the  middle  of  October,  received 
by  Roger  Radclyffe,  one  of  Henry  YIIL's  gentlemen  of  the  bed- 
chamber, a  piece  of  gold-tissue  which  her  brother  had  sent  her. 
At  the  same  time  he  announced  that  Dr.  Magnus  was  charged 
to  open  a  commission  to  treat  of  a  lasting  peace  between  England 
and  Scotland,  which  were  nominally  still  at  war.  Ptodger  Rad- 
clyffe had  presents  for  James  V.  from  his  royal  uncle,  and,  being 
an  accomplished  cavalier,  his  mission  was  to  make  himself  agree- 
able to  the  young  monarch  of  Scotland,  while  on  Dr.  Magnus 
devolved  the  more  difficult  task  of  managing  his  mother. 

The  guards  which  Q,ueen  Margaret  had  established  round  the 
person  of  her  son  proved  the  bane  of  his  youth.  Those  in  the 
ranks,  like  the  Scots  archer-guard  of  the  French  kings,  were  the 
younger  sons  of  noble  houses  ;  and  the  officers  were  from  those 
great  families  which  claimed  descent  from  the  crown — being  the 
Earl  of  Arran  (always  a  flighty  character) ;  Harry  Stuart, 
the  Q^ueen's  favorite  ;  and  his  brothers  Andrew  and  James  of 
Avonmore.  Sir  David  Lindsay  draws  lively  pictures  of  the 
temptations  with  which  these  military  courtiers  beset  his  young 
King. 

" '  Sir,'  1  some  would  say,  '  an'  like  your  majesty 
Shall  now  go  to  your  liberty, 
Thou  sbalt  by  no  man  be  subjected, 
Nor  in  the  school  no  more  corrected. 
We  think  them  very  natural  fools, 
That  learn  o'ermeikle  in  the  schools. 

*  The  Complaint,  by  Sir  David  Lindsay. 


184  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Sir,  you  must  learn  to  turn  a  spear, 

And  bear  you  like  a  man  of  war — 

For  we  shall  put  such  men  about  you, 

That  all  the  world  and  more  shall  doubt  you.' 

Then  on  his  Grace  they  put  a  guard,^ 

"Which  hastily  got  their  reward ; 

They  did  solace  his  majesty. 

Some  caused  him  revel  at  the  racket. 

Some  haled  him  to  the  harly-hacket, 

And  some,  to  show  their  courtly  courses. 

Would  ride  to  Leith  and  run  their  horses ; 

To  swiftly  gallop  o'er  the  sands 

They  neither  spared  spurs  nor  wands. 

Casting  gambades  with  bends  and  becks— 

For  wantonness  some  broke  their  necks." 

Worse,  far  worse,  were  the  ultimate  proceedings  of  these  gen- 
tlemen of  the  body-guard  placed  about  her  son  by  Q,ueen  Mar- 
garet. The  court  vice  of  gambling  is  pointed  out  by  Sir  David 
in  these  emphatic  words  : — 

"  There  was  no  play  but  cards  and  dice, 
And  vilest  flattery  bore  its  price ; 
Methought  it  was  a  piteous  thing 
To  see  that  fair  young  tender  King, 
Of  whom  these  gallants  felt  no  awe. 
Playing  with  tlieni  at  '  Pluck  the  craw^  * 
They  became  rich,  I  can  be  sure, 
But  aye  my  Prince  remained  poor. 
There  was  not  one  of  that  ill  garrison 
But  learned  him  some  evil  lesson. 
Some  went  to  crack,^  and  some  to  flatter, 
Some  played  the  fool,  and  some  did  chatter. 
Said  one,  '  De'il  stick  me  with  a  knife, 
But,  Sir,  I  know  a  maid  in  Fife, 
One  of  the  loveliest  fairest  lasses, 
For  which,  by  Mary  !  there  she  passes.' 
'  Hold  thy  tongue,  brother,'  said  another, 
'  I  know  a  fairer  than  that  other ! 
Sir,  when  ye  please  to  Lithgow  pass, 
There  ye  shall  see  a  buxom  lass !' 
*  Now,  pribble  prabble,  hey,  trow  low  !' 
Cried  the  third  man,  'thou  dost  but  mow: 4 

1  The  guard  of  two  hundred  men  which  Henry  VIII.  paid  to  be  about 
his  nephew  James  V.,  with  no  good  purpose. 

^  Pluck  the  craw.    Perhaps  synonymous  to  being  pigeoned  by  gamblers. 
^  Boast.  4  Mock. 


MARGARET     TUDOR,  185 

When  his  Grace  comes  to  fair  Stirling, 
Tliere  he  shall  see  a  day's  darling.'  " 

These  corrupting  lessons  from  the  reckless  swaggerers  of  his 
mother's  garrison,  were  but  too  readily  imbibed  by  the  young 
sovereign.  It  would  be  waste  of  words  to  point  out  that  the  faith- 
ful Sir  David  Lindsay  was  no  favorite  of  the  Glueen  Mother  :  he 
was  too  honorable  and  intelligent  to  suit  either  her  or  her  satel- 
lites. His  opinions  concerning  the  lawless  mercenaries  who  were 
to  support  the  despotism  she  established,  in  the  name  of  her  boy- 
King,  have  been  quoted.  It  is  not  likely  that  he  limited  his  stric- 
tures to  verse,  (iueen  Margaret  dismissed  Sir  David  Lindsay 
from  the  personal  attendance  on  the  King  at  the  time  she  inter- 
rupted his  education  in  1524.  His  inestimable  services  were  only 
rewarded  by  a  small  pension,  which  the  King,  child  as  he  w^as, 
took  care  should  be  regularly  paid  ;  and  Sir  David  still  had  au 
abiding  place  under  the  royal  roof  in  some  retired  nook  of  Stirling 
Castle.  Bellenden,  the  learned  translator  of  Hector  Boece,  was 
likewise  dismissed  by  Q^ueen  Margaret  from  his  place  about  her 
son's  person.  But  the  good  foundation  early  laid  by  these  great 
men  finally  supported  James  V.'s  character.  At  a  future  day, 
rising  superior  to  the  corrupting  influences  his  careless  mother 
had  permitted  to  have  access  to  her  "  tender  fair  young  King," 
he  proved  his  own  protector — and  hers  as  well — at  an  age  scarcely 
past  boyhood.  The  growing  partiality  of  the  Glueen  Regent  of 
Scotland  for  the  gay  lieutenant  of  her  son's  guards,  exasperated 
her  haughty  brother,  beyond  all  the  rest  of  her  freaks  and  ca- 
prices. He  was  of  course  more  than  ever  opposed  to  her  long- 
urged  divorce  ;  and  he  deputed  to  Dr.  Magnus,  Archdeacon  of 
the  East  Riding  of  Yorkshire,  the  delicate  diplomacy  of  reuniting 
the  refractory  Glueen  to  her  banished  spouse.  Margaret  (as  Nor- 
folk assures  Wolsey)  listened  to  no  one  for  the  Aveal  of  her  soul 
as  she  did  to  Dr.  Magnus.  Her  first  care,  before  he  opened  for- 
mally his  commission,  was  to  send  Harry  of  Avondale  to  let  out 
the  captives  whom  he  had  by  her  orders  lately  caught  and  im- 
prisoned, after  wresting  from  them  the  disputed  seals.  On  the 
day  of  the  state  reception  of  the  English  ambassadors,  the  recently 
imprisoned  prelates,  Beton  the  Chancellor  and  the  Bishop  of 
Aberdeen,  were  to  say  high  mass  before  the  Q.ueen  Regent  and 
her  son,  in  all  the  pomp  of  their  dignities,  as  if  nothing  had  hap- 
pened.    "  When  Dr.  Magnus  presented  letters  from  Henry  VIII. 


186  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

to  the  Glueen  and  tlie  young-  King,  the  trumpets  and  shaulms 
blew  up,  and  did  sound  right  pleasantly.  The  King  and  his 
moder  passed  to  the  mass  at  the  Abbey  Church  of  Holyrood ;" 
the  English  ambassadors  followed  ;  "  and  were,"  as  Magnus  ob- 
serves, "  placed  with  the  best.  In  the  mass-time,  the  young  King, 
with  his  7naster,^  Gavin  Dunbar,  was  a  good  season  occupied  in 
looking  upon  the  letters  of  his  royal  uncle,  the  King  of  England, 
so  loAdngly  and  in  such  cheerful  manner,  that,  in  our  opinions,  if 
he  had  been  his  own  son  he  could  not  have  shown  more."  ^ 

At  that  very  moment  Dr.  Magnus  knew  full  well  that  Angus 
had  crossed  the  Border.  As  he  expected  the  news  would  come 
that  afternoon,  Magnus  thought  it  best  to  present  the  gifts  which 
Henry  VIII.  had  sent  to  propitiate  Margaret.  "  Immediately  we 
had  dined  at  our  own  lodging,"^  says  Magnus,  "we  brought  to 
King  James  his  coat  of  rich  cloth-of-gold,  and  the  sword  sent  by 
the  King,  our  master  (Henry  VIII.),  whereof  both  the  Ctueen's 
Grace  his  moder  and  the  young  King  were  so  glad,  that  forthwith 
it  was  put  upon  his  said  Grace,  and  was  as  mete  as  was  possible," 
— meaning  that  the  coat  fitted  as  well  as  it  possibly  could  do. 
"  The  King  of  Scots  wore  his  fine  gold-cloth  coat  that  afternoon 
in  the  sight  of  all  his  people,  saying  openly,  as  his  Glueen-Mother 
prompted  him,  '  Ye  may  see  how  well  the  King  mine  uncle  doth 
remember  me  with  many  things,  yet  I  was  never  able  to  do  his 
Grace  any  pleasure.'  "  *  Then  finding  her  Grace,  Q,ueen  Mar- 
garet, to  be  very  pleasantly  disposed.  Dr.  Magnus  requested  to 
confer  with  her  in  her  privy-chamber,  or  drawing-room..  When 
he  was  alone  with  her,  as  he  wrote  to  Henry  VIII.,  "  I  first  made 
your  Grace's  loving  commendations  to  her,  showing  how  good 
and  gracious  you  were  disposed  to  be  to  her.  I,  Thomas  Magnus, 
having  sworn  her  Grace  not  to  disclose  the  thing  I  would  show 
her,  I  declared  '  that  it  was  your  Grace's  high  pleasure  to  pur- 
pose marriage  between  my  Lady  Princess  (Mary),  and  the  young 
King  of  Scots.'  Her  Grace,  Q,ueen  Margaret,  was  right  joyous 
thereof."  But  then  came  a  homily  of  reproof  from  Magnus,  of 
how  far  she  and  the  Earl  of  Arran  had  forgotten  themselves,  by 
each  writing  letters  to  King  Henry,  declaring,  "  that  if  the  Earl 

'  Preceptor  :  he  was  afterward  Archbishop  of  Glasgow. 

'^  Magnus  to  Wolscy.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  208-9. 

^  State  Papers,  ibid.  p.  209.     Magnus  to  Wolsey,  Nov.  2,  1524. 

*  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  209.    Magnus  to  Wolsey 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  187 

of  Angus  came  back,  no  ambassadors  would  be  received  from 
England."  While  the  (dueen  was  professing  her  penitence  for 
her  ill  conduct  to  a  brother  who  sent  by  his  ambassadors  the  rich 
presents  which  were  then  glittering  in  the  eyes  of  all  beholders, 
a  violent  knocking  at  her  withdrawing-room  door  was  heard. 
Magnus  anticipated  what  it  meant,  when  he  heard  the  messenger 
declare  "  he  must  speak  immediately  to  her  Grace  on  affairs  of 
life  and  death."  Magnus  watched  Margaret's  countenance  nar- 
rowly, while  she  heard  the  tidings.  He  saw,  as  he  says,  by  its 
expression,  "that  the  news  was  the  arrival  of  the  Earl  of  Angus 
in  Scotland.  She  turned  to  me  full  of  wrath,"  he  continues, 
"  and  disclosed  the  same.  I  confessed  that  so  it  was,  showing  it 
was  not  possible  to  be  contrary."  ^ 

Then  comes  the  finest  play  of  skill  in  the  representations  of 
Magnus  to  soothe  the  angry  Qlueen.  He  talked  of  Angus's  lofty 
stature  and  grand  figure,  of  how  much  his  beauty  was  admired 
by  all  King  Henry's  court — how  much  his  manners  and  appear- 
ance were  improved  since  his  residence  in  France.  And  as  to 
his  returning  to  Scotland,  "  if  the  said  Earl  did  offend  her,  had 
she  not  his  life  and  body  in  her  hands  to  kill  him  at  her  pleas- 
ure?"^ He  knew  right  well  that  whatever  were  the  faults  of 
Margaret  Tudor,  she  was  not  personally  cruel ;  by  her  follies  and 
want  of  foresight  she  might  cause  the  deaths  of  thousands,  but 
she  never  doomed  any  one  to  pmiishment,  even  when  it  was  well 
deserved.  "  Whereupon  her  Grace  began  roundly  to  incline  (to 
relent),  saying  these  words, — 

"  God  forbid  that  my  Lord  of  Anguish  (as  she  ever  called 
Angus),  being  so  noble  a  man  of  this  realm  as  he  is,  should  be 
in  any  such  danger  for  my  sake  I" 

Thus  Magnus  talked  the  Ciueen  out  of  her  resolution  to  seize 
and  imprison  her  spouse,  just  as  Shakspeare  has  described  the 
winning  of  her  grandmother  Elizabeth  Woodville  by  Richard  III. 

"  I  can  not  be  familiar  with  the  Earl  of  Anguish,"  observed 
the  pacified  Q,ueen,  "  considering  the  displeasures  he  hath  done 
me  ;  yet  I  will  follow  your  counsels,  and  send  for  the  Earl  of 
Arran  hither,  and  let  the  Earl  of  Anguish  stay  on  his  lands 
until  he  know  our  mind.  The  Earl  of  Lennox  (the  third  Prince 
of  the  blood),  though  sister's  son  to  Arran,"  she  added,  "would  go 
with  Angus  sooner  than  with  his  uncle." 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  213.    Magnus  to  Wolsey.  *  Ibid. 


188  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

Magnus  assisted  her  at  council  with  her  lords,  and  reconciled 
her  with  the  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  her  late  prisoner,  whom 
the  dueen  indicated  to  him  with  the  words  ^ — "  Here  is  the  Arch- 
bishop of  St.  Andrews,  late  Chancellor,  being  a  great  wise  man 
of  high  experience,  having  great  substance  of  goods,  and  many 
friends,  whom,  if  it  were  possible,  I  would  win,  trusting,  if  I 
could  so,  it  should  be  right  beneficial  to  me."  Magnus  replied, 
"that  he  wondered,  if  it  were  thus,  that  the  Glueen  had  thrown 
him  in  prison  for  high  causes  and  treasons,  and  had  informed  her 
brother  of  the  same?"  Moreover,  Magnus  added,  "he  knew 
that  it  had  been  represented  to  the  (dueen,  that  as  the  Arch- 
bishop was  a  sickly  man,  he  would  have  died  if  she  had  kept 
him  longer  incarcerated  ;  and,  if  she  had  not  liberated  him,  the 
people  would  have  released  him  without  her  leave."  The  Q,ueen 
observed  "that  as  priests  were  more  agreeable  to  priests,  Magnus 
should  invite  the  Archbishop  to  dinner  with  him  next  day,  and 
at  the  same  time  sound  him  whether  he  would  be  amenable  to 
Henry  VUL,  whose  interest  could  make  him  a  cardinal,  if  he 
could  be  drawn  from  the  French  party."  ^ 

Thus  closed  the  All  Halloween,  which  left  Glueen  Margaret  in 
mighty  good-humor,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  Angus,  her 
spouse,  had  crossed  the  Border.  The  very  next  morning,  although 
the  English  envoy  had  cajoled  Glueen  Margaret  into  being  for- 
givingly disposed  toward  her  husband,  yet,  when  she  summoned 
him  and  his  colleague  to  her  privy-chamber,  she  met  them  Avith 
a  lowering  countenance,  and  declared  herself  of  a  completely 
contrary  opinion  to  what  she  had  professed  the  night  before. 
The  change  of  mind  and  purpose  was  attributed  by  Magnus  to 
the  machinations  of  Harry  Stuart.^ 

A  private  letter  was  brought  in  from  her  husband  addressed 
to  her  ;  she  repulsed  it  indignantly,  affirming  that  she  would 
neither  touch  nor  open  it.  It  was  placed  before  her  nevertheless  ; 
but  while  Magnus  was  present  she  neglected  it.  However,  as 
Angus  sent  a  copy  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  we  can  have  the  sat- 
isfaction of  reading  it. 

"  Madame — ^  In  my  most  humble  aud  lowly  manner,  I  commend  my  ser- 
vice to  yom-  Grace. 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  213.     Magnus  to  Wolsey.  *  Ibid. 

2  Ibid.  p.  217. 

=*  Cottouian  MS.,  Oalig.  B.  vi.  p.  372.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  217,  note 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  189 

"  It  will  please  your  Grace  to  know,  that  I  have  been  with  the  King  your 
brother,  the  which  is  oone  of  the  most  cristened  [one  of  the  most  Christian- 
hke]  Princes,  and  his  Grace  hath  entreated  me  so  marvelous  well  that  he 
hath  addetted  me  (indebted  me)  to  do  his  Grace  service  and  honor,  so  flir 
as  lyes  in  my  power — mine  allegiance  excepted  to  the  King's  Grace,  my 
master  (young  James  V.),  and  your  Grace,  and  shall  do  the  same  as  gladly 
as  any  other  (can  do)  in  all  the  realm  of  Scotland,  if  your  Grace  will  ac- 
cept it. 

"  For  there  is  no  manner  of  thing  that  may  be  well  for  the  King's  Grace, 
my  sovereign,  nor  to  your  Grace's  honor  and  pleasure,  but  I  shall  be  glad  to 
fulfill  the  same. 

"  Madame,  if  there  be  any  of  my  toif fiends  (enemies)  that,  in  my  absence, 
have  made  sinister  information  of  me  to  your  Grace,  I  would  beseech  your 
Grace  so  that  ye  would  stand  so  good  and  gracious  lady  unto  me,  that  ye 
w^ould  be  content  that  I  may  speak  with  your  Grace,  and  if  I  have  offended 
your  Grace  in  any  manner  of  way,  I  shall  reform  it  at  the  sight  and  pleas- 
ure of  your  said  Grace. 

"  Beseeching  your  Grace  that  ye  will  advertise  me  of  your  mind  in  writing, 
as  that  I  shall  be  ready  to  fulfill  the  same.  As  knoweth  God,  who  preserve 
your  Grace  eternally. 

"  At  Boncle,  the  first  day  of  November,  by  the  hand  of  your  humble 
servant, 

"  Angus." 

Angus's  letter,  it  may  be  observed,  was  addressed  all  to  the 
dueen,  and  nothing  to  the  wife.  Margaret's  manner  of  receiving 
it  was  in  complete  consonance  with  the  petty  intrigue  which  was 
inherent  in  her  character.  Notwithstanding  the  contempt  which 
she  affected  in  Magnus's  presence,  curiosity  prompted  her,  when 
he  was  gone,  to  seize  the  epistle  of  her  long  absent  spouse,  open 
it,  and  read  it.^  tShe  then  had  the  letter  sealed  up,  and,  with  an 
affectation  of  the  dignity  she  did  not  possess,  pretended  to  send  it 
back  unopened.  Some  meaiii?  had  been  taken  to  insure  the 
knowledge  that  the  Q,ueen  had  unsealed  her  husband's  letter,  for 
Magnus  speaks  very  positively  that  she  had  ascertained  the  con- 
tents. Magnus  had  greatly  approved  of  this  epistle,  for  it  had 
been  submitted  to  him  before  it  was  sent :  he  thus  mentions  it  in 
one  of  his  dispatches  to  Angus — "  We  have  seen  your  letter, 
written  to  the  Q^ueen's  Grace,  it  being  right  singularly  well  com- 
posed, and  couched  for  the  purpose.  We  suppose  sometime  this 
day  ^  to  be  with  her  Grace  ;  at  the  which  time,  if  we  may  come 
to  the  knowledge  of  her  pleasure,  concerning  th,e  effect  of  your 

^  Magnus  to  Norfolk,  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  228. 

^  November  4.     Magnus  and  Radclyti'e  to  Angus.     State  Papers. 


190  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

said  letter,  we  shall  be   glad   to  advance  your  request  and  peti- 
tion." 

Meantime  Clueen  Margaret  sent  a  message  by  the  English 
courier,  Appleby,  of  a  very  uncivil  nature,  to  her  brother,  Henry 
VIII.,  which  called  forth  something  like  a  sermon  from  Wolsey, 
panned  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  who  was  to  let  her  know  the 
danger  and  impropriety  of  offending  England  and  King  Henry  at 
the  same  time.  "  Her  insolent  behavior,"  said  Wolsey,^  "  blemish- 
ing her  royal  house  and  blood  from  which  she  is  descended, 
causeth  the  King's  highness  to  think  that  she  is  not  only  the 
most  ingrate  and  unkind  sister  that  ever  was,  to  whom  his  Grace, 
neither  in  her  tender  youth  nor  since,  hath  ever  given  any 
cause." 

It  seems  the  Bishop  of  Dunkeld,  who  had  been  lately  imprisoned 
by  the  Glueen,  had  heard  of  a  plot  (or  had  invented  one),  for 
assassinating  Henry  VIII.  Margaret  either  treated  it  lightly,  or 
else  knew  nothing  about  it,  for  it  really  seems  to  have  been  a 
specimen  of  the  many  mystifications  regarding  conspiracies  which 
never  were  thought  of  by  any  one  but  the  informers.  If  so,  the 
whole  proceeding  was  rather  hard  on  Margaret.  Wolsey  con- 
tinued to  set  forth  the  indignation  felt  by  his  Sovereign,  that  his 
sister  knew  of  conspiracies  against  his  life,  and  would  not  reveal 
them.  "  There  hath  been  no  matter,"  he  writes  to  Norfolk,'' 
"  which,  in  my  life,  I  have  seen  his  Grace  (Henry  VIII.)  take 
more  unkindly,  or  that  more  hath  moved  his  royal  and  princely 
courage  to  think  of  the  extreme  high  ingratitude,  and  unnatural 
dealing  in  any  person,  than  her  most  strange  answer  given  to 
Appleby,  and  the  continual  delay  which  the  said  dueen  Margaret 
hath  used  in  opening  and  disclosing  a  matter,  as  it  is  said,  much 
to  the  danger  of  the  King's  live  (life)  and  person  ;  so  to  satisfy 
her  own  malice,  she  would  be  contented  to  conceal,  and  not  suffer 
to  be  discovered  that  thing  which  she  might  endanger  her  own 
brother's  life  ;  and  consequently,  either  to  destroy  her  brother,  her 
son,  and  herself,  for  revenging  her  own  rancor  and  malice." 
Wolsey  concludes  by  hoping  that  Margaret  may  not  hereafter 
have  cause  to  be  sorry  she  ever  was  born.'' 

The  punishment  ordered  by  Henry  and  Wolsey  was,  imme- 
diately stopping  the  payment  of  the  two  hundred  mercenaries,  of 

^  Wolsey  to  Norfolk,  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  219.  "^  Ibid.  220. 

«  Ibid.  221. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  191 

which  Q,ueen  Margaret  and  Harry  Stuart  had  made  such  a  fine 
use.  But  breaking  with  her  did  not  suit  the  EngUsh  pohcy. 
Norfolk  says,'  "  pleasanter  letters  must  be  written  to  her,  or  the 
truce  will  be  run  out  ;  and  when  the  war  is  renewed,  of  which 
she  will  be  glad,  as  the  mischief  done  by  the  English  borderers 
will  all  fall  on  the  demesnes  of  her  enemies."  He  takes  no  notice 
of  the  conspiracy,  but  says,  "  he  perceives  the  unsteadfastness  of 
the  Glueen's  demeanor,  and  that  he  knows  her  love  for  young 
Harry  Stuart  is  so  much,  that  he  can  turn  all  as  he  list  ;  and  it 
shall  be  well  done  that  Master  Magnus,  as  a  priest,  gives  her 
wholesome  counsel  for  her  honor  in  this  world,  and  the  weal  of 
her  soul  in  that  to  come,  and  be  plain  with  her,  as  in  his  first  in- 
structions ;  and  unless  he  sees  some  likelihood  that  she  follows  the 
mind  of  the  Lord  Cardinal,  to  be  round  with  her,  not  sparing  to 
tell  her,  that  all  the  realm  doth  marvelously  speak  thereof,  as  I 
doubt  not  they  daily  do." 

All  the  old  councillors  had  told  Norfolk  "  that  since  the  dueen 
had  had  the  mercenary  guard,  she  had  not  heeded  the  advice  of 
the  wise  men  of  the  realm,  thinking  that,  with  the  strength  of 
the  said  armed  men,  she  would  force  every  body  to  follow  her 
mind,  which  ye  shall  see  will  be  as  Harry  Stuart  will  have  it, 
and  that  shall  be  naught  for  us."  Norfolk  reviles  her  other  chief 
councillor,  the  Earl  of  Arran.  Among  his  other  crimes,  "he 
daily  wore  the  French  King's  order  on  his  breast  (that  of  St.  Mi- 
chael), which  he  was  not  wont  to  wear  so  often."  Then  adds  Nor- 
folk, in  the  dry  quaint  style  peculiar  to  him — "  Whoever  have  him 
best,  is  no  more  sure  of  him  than  he  that  hath  an  eel  by  the  tail."  ^ 

Magnus  declared,  "  that  finding  Q.ueen  Margaret  entirely  per- 
verse, he  had  given  her  advice,  as  a  priest,  for  the  weal  of  her 
soul,  and  reformation  of  her  manners,  as  no  Q,ueen  was  ever  given 
before  ;  but  she  showed  little  appearance  of  amendment."  Master 
Magnus  strongly  suspected  that  the  Q,ueen,  in  return,  had  con- 
trived a  little  plot  for  his  especial  annoyance.  She  sent  for  him 
and  his  colleague  to  visit  her  at  Holyrood  ;  and  when  they  passed 
through  her  Grace's  great  chamber,  they  were  beset  by  ten  or 
twelve  Edinburgh  wives,  all  expert  scolds,  who  pounced  on  the 
poor  ambassadors  as  they  went  to  the  dueen's  privy-chamber,  or 
drawing-room,  and  commenced  exclaiming  upon  them  at  the  top 

1  Norfolk  to  Wolsey,  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  226,  November  6, 1524. 
»  Ibid. 


192  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

of  their  voices.  When  Magnus  and  Radclyffe  could  get  in  a  won 
or  two  above  the  din,  to  know  the  cause  of  this  outburst  of  femal* 
eloquence,  they  found  themselves  accused,  as  representatives  of 
the  English  government,  of  the  capture  of  the  husbands  and  good 
of  the  aggrieved  wives,  notwithstanding  peace  proclaimed  ;  "  which 
mischief,"  they  said,  "was  done  by  the  subtilty  of  Enghshmen 
manning  the  barque  of  Sandwich."  "  It  was  Hob-a-Barton,' 
says  Radclyfle  piteously,  "  (dueen  Margaret's  comptroller,  ant 
mightily  in  her  favor,  who  had  maliciously  contrived  the  onset  of 
the  enraged  Edinburgh  wives  in  his  royal  mistress's  presence 
chamber."  ^  A  rather  curious  instance  of  the  class  of  persons  al 
lowed  to  approach  thus  near  to  royalty — for  these  enraged  mat- 
rons were  the  wives  of  the  crew  of  one  merchant-ship. 

Margaret,  perhaps  somewhat  amused  by  the  objurgations  in- 
flicted by  the  wives  of  Edinburgh  on  the  ears  of  her  brother's 
ambassadors,  was  in  a  very  good  humor,  and  prepared  for  them 
a  much  pleasanter  scene.  She  invited  them  to  go  with  her  that 
afternoon  and  see  her  son  perform  his  manly  exercises  on  Leith 
sands.  Their  description  of  what  they  saw  there  is  addressed  to 
the  boy's  royal  uncle,  and  is  penned  with  a  delectable  quaintness 
which  is  far  more  characteristic  than  modern  diction.  It  is  writ- 
ten by  Roger  Radclyfle  : — 

"  Now  all  things  proceed  more  favorably  than  they  did  afore,  by  reason 
that  in  our  poor  suits,  most  humbly  made  to  Queen  Margaret's  Grace,  there 
is  for  the  time  little  that  is  contrarious  to  her  pleasure.  Insomuch  that  the 
Queen's  said  Grace  had  us  forth  for  solace  (recreation)  with  the  King's  Grace 
here,  at  Leith,  and  in  the  fields,  to  see  him  stir  his  horses,  and  rua  with  a 
spear  among  his  lords  and  servants  at  a  glove. 

"  Also,  by  the  Queen's  favor,  we  have  seen  his  said  Grace  use  himself 
pleasantly  both  in  singing  and  dancing,  and  showing  familiaiity  among  his 
lords.  All  which  his  princely  acts  and  doings  be  so  excellent  for  his  age — 
not  yet  thirteen  till  Easter  next — that,  in  our  opinion,  it  is  not  possible  they 
should  be  amended.  And  mich  more  to  our  comfort  it  is,  to  see  that  in 
personage,  ftivor,  and  countenance,  and  in  all  other  his  proceedings,  his 
Grace  of  Scotland  resembleth  very  mich  the  King's  Grace,  our  mai^ter. 
And  besides  all  this,  his  said  Grace  hath  with  most  loving  countenance 

1  Magnus  to  Wolsey.  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  239,  November  10.  Some- 
times Magnus  holds  the  pen,  sometimes  Radclytie,  in  the  same  letter,  which 
they  indicate  by  the  words  of,  "  I,  Thomas  Magnus,"  or  "  I,  Roger  Rad- 
clyffe." The  person  they  call  by  the  odd  appellation  of  "  Hob-a-Barton"  is  no 
other  than  Queen  Margaret's  old  servant,  Robin  Barton,  comptroller  of  her 
household,  often  mentioned  in  her  previous  adventures. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  193 

showed  unto  us  that  micli  it  pleased  his  Grace  to  hear  of  the  good  manners 
of  England,  and  mich  it  displeaseth  to  see  his  subjects  exercise  the  fashions 
and  manners  of  France.  And  we  being  present  saw  his  Grace  reprove  one 
of  his  ser'rants  for  that  cause." 

There  was  adroit  flattery  in  this  dispatch  to  Henry,  who  envied 
his  sister  her  fatherless  boy — envying,  however,  more  the  island- 
heir  than  the  promising  child.  He  was  pleased  to  find  the  brave 
and  forward  James  of  Scotland  reckoned  the  miniature  of  himself. 
Unfortunately  there  was  more  resemblance  in  his  nephew's 
impetuosity  and  willfulness  than  even  in  his  red  and  white  com- 
plexion, the  warm  hue  of  his  curling  hair,  and  his  vigorous  and 
active  form. 

The  day  after  the  "  notable  exclamation  of  the  wives  of  Edin- 
burgh," as  Magnus  terms  the  scene  in  the  Q/Ueen's  presence- 
chamber  recently  detailed,  an  audience  was  given  by  her  to  the 
English  envoy,  on  the  subject  of  the  infringement  of  the  laws  of 
the  ocean,  which  had  naturally  exasperated  those  faithful  women. 
"At  our  coming,"  says  Magnus,  "  M^e  found  the  Earl  of  Arran, 
and  Hob-a-Barton  the  Comptroller,  standing  beside  the  chair  of 
the  (Queen's  Grace  in  her  privy-chamber."  ^  Magnus  having 
shown  the  Earl  a  letter  from  Henry  VIIL,  he  was  so  deeply 
offended  "that  he  retreated  into  the  (dueen's  antechamber  ;  and 
although  her  Grace  sent  to  him  four  times,  he  would  not  return." 
Margaret,  it  seems,  would  not  suffer  any  communication  between 
Magnus  and  Arran,  her  prime-minister,  but  what  she  heard. 

The  Gtueen  continued  obdurate  in  repulsing  all  billets-doux  and 
other  blandishments  from  her  husband.  His  first  letter  was 
dated  from  his  castle  of  Boncle,  situated  within  a  few  miles  of  the 
English  border.  When  his  epistle  was  returned  to  him,  and  he 
found  his  submissions  were  of  no  avail,  but  that  Magnus  and  his 
spouse  were  at  high  dispute  as  to  whether  she  would  permit  him 
to  take  his  place  in  the  Parliament  then  collecting  at  Edinburgh 
Tolbooth,  he  resolved  to  wait  for  no  permission,  but  make  his 
approach  according  to  his  own  will  and  pleasure,  which  was  by 
suddenly  scaling  the  walls  of  Edinburgh  with  a  posse  of  his  faction. 
He  then  opened  the  nearest  gate  to  an  armed  force,  headed  by  his 
friends  the  Earls  of  Lemiox  and  Kilmorris  (Glencairn),  the  Lord 

Magnus  to  Wolsey,  Edinburgh,  Nov.  10,  1524.    Illustrations  of  Scottish 
History,  p.  102— Maitland  Club. 


194  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

of  Buccleuch,  and  four  hundred  Border  cavalryV  The  descent 
of  these  armed  invaders  into  the  midst  of  the  peacefully  sleeping 
city,  it  may  be  supposed,  occasioned  the  greatest-'consternation. 
Q,ueen  Margaret  heard  of  the  arrival  of  her  unwelcome  spouse 
literally  by  "  public  outcry."  Directly  Angus  had  made  his 
formidable  inbreak,  he  rode  with  his  noble  associates  to  the 
Market  Cross,  and  caused  his  herald  to  make  proclamation  of  his 
peaceable  and  amiable  intentions,  which  every  one  understood 
were  of  course  to  last  as  long  as  everything  went  his  own  way. 

Margaret,  who  never  showed  the  spirit  and  courage  of  her 
Plantagenet  descent  excepting  in  times  of  sudden  danger,  was 
roused  into  heroism  by  the  capture  of  Edinburgh.  She  wished  to 
gain  the  strong  fortress  of  the  Castle,  but  found  that  her  retreat 
would  be  cut  off  by  her  belligerent  spouse  ;  she  therefore  deter- 
mined to  keep  him  at  bay  as  long  as  she  could  at  her  residence 
of  Holyrood.  There  were  two  small  cannon  among  the  defenses 
of  the  portal  of  Holyrood  Palace  ;  these  the  Q,ueen  ordered  to  be 
loaded,  and  she  gave  notice  that  she  would  have  them  fired,  if  the 
mob  raised  by  Angus's  partisans  attempted  any  assault  on  the 
royal  residence. 

Magnus  and  E-adclyffe,  who  were  ostensibly  of  the  faction  of 
the  dueen's  husband,  immediately  sought  an  audience  of  her, 
craving  leave  to  speak  with  her,  intending  to  make  themselves 
mighty  busy  in  the  political  storm  then  raging  without  and 
within  old  Holyrood.     But  Glueen  Margaret  bade  them  sternly 

"  Begone,  and  not  presume  to  intermeddle  with  Scottish 
affairs  !"  ^ 

The  uproar  increasing  without,  Margaret  gave  the  word  to  her 
cannoneers  "  to  fire,"  which  was  done  forthwith  ;  when  the  same 
species  of  execution  took  place  which  is  invariable  on  such  occa- 
sions. The  mischievous  disturbers  of  the  public  peace  escaped  all 
harm  ;  while  an  old  woman,  a  priest,  and  two  merchant-mariners 
were  slaughtered,  who,  poor  souls,  had  done  no  other  harm  than 
looking  on.  A  bad  commencement  of  defense  ;  but  Margaret  had 
never  bent  her  thoughts  toward  the  philosophy  thus  nobly  ex- 
pressed by  Schiller  in  his  Wallenstein  : — 

"  For  wlien  the  ball 
Has  left  its  cannon,  and  is  on  its  flight, 

*  Magnus  to  "Wolsey.    State  Papers,  vol.  v.    Nov.  26,  1524.  '"'  Ibid. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  195 

It  is  no  longer  a  dead  instrument ! 

It  lives,  a  spirit  passes  into  it ! 

The  avenging  furies  seize  possession  of  it, 

And  with  sure  mahce  guide  it  the  worst  way." 

Strange  that  imagery,  conceived  in  the  highest  flights  of  meta- 
physical poetry,  should  be  frequently  illustrated  by  simple  facts, 
both  in  the  records  of  the  past  and  the  history  of  Europe  even 
at  the  present  era. 

At  four  in  the  afternoon  the  two  intruding  earls,  Angus  and 
Lennox,  having  acted  according  to  their  pleasure  in  Edinburgh 
all  day,  received  the  young  King's  formal  notice  "to  avoid."  ^ 
They  thought  fit  to  obey,  and  retired  to  Dalkeith. 

All  was  hurry  and  din  in  old  Holyrood  the  evening  of  Novem- 
ber 26,  1524,  after  the  failing  light  had  seen  the  retreat  of  the 
Earl  of  Angus  to  Dalkeith.  The  Uueen  determined  to  retire 
forthwith  from  her  palace,  as  she  supposed  that  he  would  be 
back  again  directly  he  was  somewhat  recovered  from  the  con- 
sternation occasioned  by  her  resolute  cannonade.  Angus  by  no 
means  possessed  any  superfluous  stock  of  valor,  as  his  dueen 
knew  right  well  by  former  experience.  Her  Majesty's  first  care 
was  to  secure  all  she  held  most  dear,  being  her  jewel-caskets  and 
the  young  King  her  son  ;  she  then  commenced  her  retreat  to  her 
stronghold  of  Edinburgh  Castle.  By  torchlight,  therefore,  before 
morning,  the  dueen,  the  young  monarch,  James  V.,  the  officers 
and  ladies  of  both  their  households,  escorted  by  Harry  Stuart  of 
Avondale  and  his  gay  company  of  cavaliers  ^  (who  formed  their_ 
body-guard),  wended  their  way  up  to  the  gray  citadel  of  Dunedin  ; 
and  surely  a  very  picturesque  procession  they  must  have  made. 

From  thence  Glueen  Margaret  wrote  a  remonstrance  to  Wolsey, 
of  which  the  following  sentences  contain  the  gist  and  pith  : 
"  Therefore,  my  Lord,  I  pray  you  consider  how  I  am  done  to,  and 
how  daily  the  Earl  of  Anguish  sets  to  take  from  me  the  King,  my 
son  ;  wherefore  I  marvel  what  pleasure  it  may  be  for  the  King's 
Grace,  my  brother,  to  hold  me  in  daily  trouble.  In  your  hands, 
God  willing,  I  sal  never  come  to  any  evil.  And  should  I  leave 
this  realm,  when  any  other  princes  understand  how  I  am  done  to 
they  will  have  pity  on  me.      I  can  no  more  I"  ^ 

The  consternation  of  Angus  at  the  onslaught  his  consort  had 

^  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     State  Papers,  vol.  v.     Nov.  26,  1524.         ^  Ibid. 
'  Margaret  to  Wolsey,  Nov.  28.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  264. 


196  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

effected  with  her  cannon  lasted  much  longer  than  she  had  calcu- 
lated. He  continued  his  retreat  till  he  arrived  at  Tantallan, 
from  which  stronghold  he  indited  an  epistle  to  Wolsey,  couched 
in  bitterer  terms  than  he  had  as  yet  dared  to  use  against  the 
royal  sister  of  England,  "  Ye  are  deceived  by  the  Q,ueen/  the 
greatest  ennoinyse  (enemy,  probably)  that  I  have  in  Scotland. 
Therefore,  please  your  Grace,  to  give  no  credence  whatever  you 
hear  report  of  me.  For  Harry  Stuart  and  the  Earl  of  Cassillis 
are  cousins-german."  The  Earl  of  Cassillis  was  at  that  time  near 
the  ear  of  the  English  prime-minister,  being  ambassador.  Magnus, 
the  priest-ambassador,  notwithstanding  the  sharp  reproof  with 
which  Margaret  had  repelled  his  intermeddling  on  the  day  of  the 
Holyrood  cannonade,  wrote  to  Wolsey  somev/hat  in  extenuation 
of  her  proceedings  :  "  Your  Grace  knoweth  what  a  haught  letter 
the  Glueen  wrote  when  she  heard  the  Earl  of  Angus  would  enter 
Scotland ;  therefore  it  is  not  to  be  thought  but  when  the  Earl 
was  come,  indeed,  that  her  Grace  should  be  some  deal  further 
moved.^  The  Glueen,"  he  adds,  "  writeth  much  with  her  own 
hand,  and  sendeth  forth  by  one  Davy  Wood  to  the  King's  high- 
ness." 

Wolsey  commanded  that  Margaret  should  be  propitiated  by  a 
donation  of  £200,  and  that  a  sop  of  £100  should  be  thrown 
to  her  Cerberus,  the  Earl  of  Arran.  Magnus,  however,  refused 
to  fee  Arran,  and  gave  Glueen  Margaret  only  £100,  who  mur- 
mured at  the  paucity  of  the  gratuity.  But  Magnus  affirmed  that 
she  would  "  call  fast  for  more  money,"  therefore  he  had  saved 
back  a  supply  to  appease  her  future  rapacity.  The  Duke  of 
Norfolk  was  indignant  at  any  consideration  being  shown  to  her, 
and  spoke  his  mind  with  his  usual  bold  roughness  :  "  I  think 
none  worthy  to  bear  any  blame  but  only  the  Q.ueen,  who  is  so 
blended  with  the  folly  that  I  have  often  written  of  to  your  Grace, 
that  to  have  her  ungodly  appetite  followed  she  careth  not  what 
she  doeth.  And  yet,  for  all  her  evil  dealing,  I  greatly  doubt  not 
but  that  all  shall  come  well  to  pass,  in  despite  of  those  who  would 
be  to  the  contrary.^ 

The  astute  veteran  means  ivell  for  the  English  faction  by  means 
of  Angus. 

^  Angus  to  Wolsey,  Nov.  28,  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  265. 
"^  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  Nov.  27.     State  Papers,  p.  2*70. 
^  State  Papers,  p.  272.    Norfolk  to  Wolsey. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

SUMMARY. 
Queen  Margaret's  residence  in  Edinburgh  Castle— Her  dispute  with  Magnus— Employs 
Sir  James  Hamilton  in  her  divorce — Groselle's  diplomacy  touching  her  marrying  Al- 
bany— Furious  quarrel  in  her  presence  with  Harry  Stuart — Her  familiar  discussions  with 
Angus  on  their  own  divorce — Opens  Parliament  as  Queen  Regent — Affronted  by  Henry 
YIII.'s  Letter — Her  fit  of  passionate  weeping — Her  influence  over  the  young  King — Her 
strange  plea  of  divorce — Her  mysterious  absence — Required  to  carry  on  State  aifairs — 
Her  son  pleads  her  excuse — Her  march  from  the  North — Encoimters  Angus  and  her  son — 
Her  general  deserts  her— Her  divorce  pronounced  in  Scotland  and  Ancona— Its  ille- 
gality— Queen  Margaret  declares  Harry  Stuart  her  husband — They  are  besieged  in  Edin- 
burgh Castle — Queen  siurenders  him — She  sends  to  England  for  blood-hounds — Retires 
to  Stirling  Castle — Leaves  it  desolate,  and  becomes  a  fugitive — Exchanges  with  her  son 
Stirling  for  Methven— Her  partisans  aid  the  King  in  expelling  Angus— Harry  Stuart  rec- 
ognized by  her  son  as  her  husband,  and  made  Lord  Methven — Escape  of  her  daugh- 
ter— Queen  Margaret's  Letters  on  Angus's  exile — She  goes  to  a  Highland  festival — Pre- 
sides at  an  archery  contest — Holds  her  forest-court  at  Ettrick — Her  brother  sends  Lord 
W.  Howard  to  announce  his  marriage  with  Anne  Boleyn — Queen  Margaret's  diplomacy — 
Betrays  her  son's  confidence — Is  in  disgrace  with  him — Complains  of  her  son  and  hus- 
band to  Henry  VIII. — Her  anger  at  his  sending  her  daughter  to  the  Tower — Her  intent 
of  divorcing  Methven  while  her  son  is  in  France — Talks  of  re-marrjing  Angus — Her  son 
stops  her  new  divorce  on  his  return — Her  rage — Her  letter  on  the  birth  of  Edward  VI.^ 
Ker  friendship  with  her  son's  consort,  Mary  of  Lorraine — Margaret's  zeal  for  Catholi- 
cism— Sponsor  to  her  grandson — Fatal  illness — Confession — Death — Burial,  &c. 

The  domestic  disasters  which  followed  Q,ueen  Margaret's  retreat 
to  Edinburgh  Castle  were  of  a  nature  calculated  to  throw  the 
imputation  of  "ill  luck" — ^that  ominous  Shibboleth  of  the  popu- 
lace— over  the  whole  tendency  of  her  affairs.  Such  was  the 
opinion  of  the  lower  classes,  by  whom  she  had  hitherto  been  sup- 
ported for  the  sake  of  their  future  protector,  the  royal  minor,  their 
sovereign.  The  ignorant,  who  never  trouble  themselves  with  the 
connection  of  cause  and  effect,  found  that  the  furious  hurricane, 
which  almost  toppled  down  the  stalwart  old  pile  on  Margaret's 
head,  had  a  great  deal  to  do  with  her  imprisonment  of  their  pre- 
lates, and  her  forcible  wresting  of  Great  Seal,  Privy  Seal,  Signet 
and  (Quarter  Seal,  by  the  strong  hand  of  armed  mercenaries,  from 
those  who  had  legally  held  them. 

"  The  dueen,  with  the  King,  being  at  this  time  resident  in 
Edinburgh  Castle,  there  was  so  great  a  wind  one  TJphally  (Epiph- 


198  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

any  ?)  day,  that  the  same  blew  doM^i  the  whole  battling  stones 
(battlements)  of  David's  Tower,  and  raised  fire  in  the  dueen's 
lodo-ing:  within  the  Castle,  that  the  same  was  almost  all  burnt."  ^ 
The  stormy  wind,  which  was  assuredly  no  respecter  of  persons, 
whatsoever  the  dealers  of  judgments  might  declare,  "  cast  down 
the  Bishop  of  Galloway's  house  upon  him  while  he  was  saying 
divine  service  ;  yet  his  life  was  saved  by  special  grace,  for  the 
whilk  he  thankit  God,  and  made  a  solemn  ivoiv  he  would  no  lon- 
ger be  ane  courtier,  and  so  left  the  Glueen's  court,  and  past  home 
to  his  awn  cure  and  see,  where  he  remainit,  acting  according  to 
his  vocation,"  ^ 

No  historian  has  dwelt  on  the  danger  which  threatened  Scot- 
land of  having  Catherine  de  Medicis  for  a  Glueen.  She  being 
the  daughter  of  the  Duke  d'Urbino  and  Marie  de  Boulogne,  niece 
and  heiress  of  Albany's  wife,  the  late  Regent  wished  to  secure 
her  great  riches  for  his  young  sovereign,  James  V.  Henry  YIII. 
sought  to  counteract  the  offer  to  the  Scottish  King  of  Catherine 
de  Medicis  and  her  enormous  dower,  by  earnestly  tendering  the 
hand  of  his  daughter  Mary  to  him.  It  is  probable  that  Glueen 
Margaret's  remarkable  coolness  respecting  this  marriage  arose  from 
some  pre-knowledge  of  the  manner  in  which  her  brother  meant  to 
treat  the  mother  of  the  Princess,  his  noble-minded  wife,  Katharine 
of  Aragon.  Margaret  was,  as  Magnus  slyly  notes,^  "  very  high- 
minded"  concerning  all  the  grand  offers  of  marriage  made  to  her 
son.  But  the  real  fact  was,  she  had  previously  entered  into  a 
private  agreement  with  Louisa  of  Savoy,  when  that  Princess  was 
appointed  Regent  of  France,  whereby  she  had  sold  the  marriage 
of  the  young  King  James  to  her  for  her  granddaughter,  the  little 
Magdalene  of  France.  On  one  occasion,  however,  she  openly 
boasted  of  having  received  a  benefaction  of  thirty  thousand  crowns  * 
from  France,  with  which,  according  to  her  nature,  she  bitterly 
taunted  the  English  ambassador,  Magnus,  saying,  "  It  were  long 
before  I  have  so  much  from  England." 

William  Hetherington,  one  of  her  English  officers  in  attendance 
behind  her  chair,  took  a  part  in  the  colloquy  by  exclaiming  that 
"Your  Grace  should  not  speak  so  I" 

^  Lesley's  History,  p.  180.  ^  Ibid. 

^  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  Dec.  27.     State  Papers,  p.  278. 
*  Documeuts  relative   to  the  history   of  Scotland  in  the   archives  of 
France. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  199 

"  Oh,"  replied  Margaret,  "  I  said  as  much  or  more  yesterday  to 
Magnus." 

The  ambassador  denied  it ;  and  declares  that  he  made  her  con- 
fess "  that,  were  it  not  for  the  love  and  dread  which  Scotland 
bore  her  brother,  Henry  VIIL,  she  would  have  long  since  been 
put  from  the  rule  of  her  son.  King  James." 

"  Of  late  was  with  me,"  wrote  Magnus,  "  Sir  James  Hamilton, 
a  right  proper  gentleman,  and  one  that  hath  the  greatest  rule 
with  the  Earl  of  Arran.  He  demanded  of  me  '  Whether  I  sup- 
posed the  King's  Highness  (Henry  VIII.)  could  be  content  if  there 
were  a  divorce  between  the  Glueen's  Grace  and  the  Earl  of 
Anguish?'  "  Magnus,  to  this  delicate  question,  replied,  "that 
he  could  make  no  answer  excepting  this,  that  he  had  never  heard 
his  Kmg,  or  the  English  Council,  speak  of  the  matter."  ^ 

The  indefatigable  Sir  James  Hamilton  then  convened  a  meet- 
ing between  the  Earl  of  Lennox,  and  other  confidants  of  Angus 
and  the  Q.ueen,  to  let  them  know  "that,  if  her  husband  would 
aid  her  in  procuring  the  divorce,  she  would  not  oppose  his  as- 
sumption of  political  power,  and  would  permit  a  reconciliation 
between  hira  and  her  prime-minister,  the  Earl  of  Arran.  While 
Margaret  carried  on  the  divorce  matter,  she  was,  at  the  same 
time,  tantalizing  the  English  ambassador  by  the  attentions  she 
paid  to  Groselles  (or  Courcelles),  a  secretary  of  Albany,  left  by 
him  as  captain  of  his  fortress  of  Dunbar,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
take  care  of  the  French  interest,  by  acting  as  a  sort  of  resident 
minister.  Groselles  flattered  her,  renewing  hopes  that,  if  she  were 
divorced,  the  Duke  of  Albany,  now  a  widower,  meant  to  com- 
mence a  suit  for  her  hand.  The  news  was  whispered  to  young 
Harry  Stuart,  or  perhaps  was  vaunted  to  him  by  Margaret  her- 
self His  anger  led  him  to  adopt  the  English  interest  for  a  short 
time,  the  Q,ueen  having  concealed  that  the  real  business  of  the 
castellan  of  Dunbar  was  to  promote  the  marriage  of  either  Cathe- 
rine de  Medicis  or  the  infant  daughter  of  Francis  I.  with  James  V. 

One  day  the  Glueen  was  ill,  and  remained  in  her  chamber  all 
day — or  rather  she  came  not  into  the  state-rooms,  nor  appeared 
before  the  public  ;  nevertheless  her  majesty  had  all  her  attendants 
round  her.  Groselles  was  importunate  for  an  audience,  and  was 
admitted  to  speak  with  her.  Instead  of  paying  the  delicate  at- 
tentions which  the  royal  invalid  expected  as  her  due,  he  troubled 
^  Magnus  to  "Wolsey.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  SOY. 


200  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

her  with  much  disagreeable  business  ;  and  happening  to  see  some 
of  her  maids  (his  old  acquaintances  in  the  days  when  his  master, 
the  -Regent  Albany,  swayed  the  destinies  of  Scotland),  Groselles 
so  far  forgot  the  solemnity  of  etiquette  as  to  laugh  and  chatter 
very  familiarly  with  the  damsels.  The  Q,ueen  made  some  indi- 
cation of  her  displeasure,  when  Harry  Stuart,  glad  of  an  oppor- 
tunity of  raising  strife  between  her  and  Groselles,  stepped  from 
behind  her  chair,  and  proposed  to  him  the  agreeable  choice  of 
avoiding  the  (olueen's  chamber  or  being  cast  down  stairs.^ 

The  unfortunate  Frenchman  soon  after  paid  a  visit  to  the  levee 
of  the  King  of  Scotland.  Magnus  himself  prevailed  on  James  to 
order  his  expulsion  from  the  privy-chamber,  on  which  occasion 
young  Harry  Stuart  was  quite  as  active  in  forcing  poor  Groselles 
to  make  his  exit.  Magnus  strongly  commended  Harry  Stuart's 
conduct  on  the  occasion  to  Henry  VHI.  He  owns,  however,  that 
some  of  the  Scottish  Lords  showed  great  indignation.  As  to  Gro- 
selles, he  loudly  proclaimed  the  want  of  courtesy  at  the  Scottish 
receptions,  and  vowed  "that  he  expected  to  be  assassinated  by 
the  over-officious  ruffling  lieutenant  of  the  guards,  Harry  Stuart." 
Lord  Cassilis,^  lately  the  ambassador  to  England,  and  entirely  of 
the  English  party,  endeavored  to  enlist  his  cousin  as  a  creature 
of  Henry  VHL     Magnus  wrote — 

"  Since  the  coming  home  of  my  Lord  of  Cassilis  (Jan.  8),  his  Lordship  hath 
spoken  with  Harry  Stuart  in  sundry  cases  for  his  own  and  the  Queen's  honor, 
wherein  my  Lord  saith  the  said  Harry,  his  kinsman,  hath  done  much  good 
in  these  French  matters.  The  Queen  keeping  her  chamber,  Groselles,  upon 
importune  suit,  came  unto  her  Grace  and  troubled  her  with  much  matter, 
wherewith  her  Grace  was  not  content," 

Then  follows  another  version  of  the  thro  wing-down-stairs  ad- 
venture, of  which  Radclyffe  had  given  previously  a  more  racy 
account. 

The  months  of  February  and  part  of  March  were  passed  by  the 

1  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  307.     Jan.  24,   1524-5. 

^  The  Earl  of  Cassilis,  Scotch  ambassador  about  James  V.'s  marriage  witt 
Mary  Tudor,  came  home  to  Edinbm-gh  from  London,  Jan.  8,  1524-5  •, 
therefore  the  scene  between  Harry  and  Groselles  must  have  taken  place 
between  that  date  and  Jan.  24,  the  date  of  Magnus's  letter  edited  by  our 
leai-ned  friend  Mr.  Stevenson.  Illustrations  of  Scottish  History,  p.  125-131. 
Maitland  Club.  Mr.  Stevenson  quotes  the  French  envoy's  name  as  "  Cour- 
celles." 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  201 

dueen  at  Edinburgh  Castle,  "  holding-  herself  warily,  and  keeping 
guard  lest  her  young  son  should  be  taken  from  her  by  the  con- 
federate Lords."  The  childish  despotism  of  Margaret  had  put 
her  at  issue  with  the  clergy  and  government  of  the  country :  of 
course  the  chancellor  and  all  the  great  officers  of  state  were  in- 
dignant at  her  interference  with  their  functions,  when,  with  her 
ignorant  tyranny,  she  deprived  them  of  their  seals  and  insignia. 
Her  Majesty  now  executed  all  state  aflairs  lawlessly  by  the  aid 
of  her  lieutenant  of  the  guards.  Long-suffering  and  loyal  as  the 
people  at  large  were,  in  consideration  of  their  youthful  King,  the 
conduct  of  the  Q.ueen-mother,  they  were  forced  to  own,  was  not 
only  noxious  but  ridiculous. 

The  divorce  from  Angus  was  the  point  she  was  laboring  with 
headstrong  energy.  Once  more  she  offered  to  give  up  her  dower 
lands,  to  the  value  of  1000  merits  per  annum,  and  withal  carried 
on  the  negotiation  with  Angus  in  person,  using  the  utmost  famil- 
iarity in  discussing  the  divorce,  and  now  and  then  affecting,  in 
private,  much  friendsliip  and  kindness  to  him,  just  for  the  pur- 
pose of  deceiving  Magnus,  who  lectured  her  incessantly  on  her 
want  of  godliness  in  her  projected  divorce.  Angus,  meantime, 
had  contrived  to  obliterate,  or  put  out  of  her  reach,  all  proofs  of 
his  subsequent  private  marriage  with  Lady  Janet  Stuart.  It  was 
that  event  which  had  incensed  Margaret  at  first  against  her  spouse. 

At  last  Q.ueen  Margaret  sent  her  steward,  a  priest  whose 
sanctity  was  approved  by  Magnus,  to  treat  with  Angus  ;  and 
after  many  messages,  she  condescended  to  come  down  from  her 
stronghold  of  Edinburgh  Castle  to  Holyrood  and  open  Parliament, 
consenting  that  Angus  and  his  faction  might  appear  in  their 
places.  As  Regent  for  her  son,  they  agreed  that  Q.ueen  Mar- 
garet was  to  exercise  all  sovereign  power  :  on  the  other  hand,  it 
was  stipulated,  by  v/riten  treaty,  to  the  following  effect — 

"  Item,  the  Earl  of  Anguish  sal  bind  him  to  the  King's  Grace  (James  V.) 
under  pain  of  the  crym  of  lese-majesty,  not  to  intromit  (intermeddle)  with 
the  Queen's  Grace's  person,  lands,  and  goods,  even  gif  he  is  her  husband, 
until  Whitsontide  next."  ^ 

By  that  time  Margaret  hoped  that  her  divorce  would  be  accom- 
plished." 

When  the  treaty  was  concluded,   Glueen  Margaret  and  the 

1  Magnus  to  Wolsey.    State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  218.  ^  Ibid.  p.  331. 

I* 


202  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

young  King  came  in  state,  royally  robed,  from  Edinburgh  Castle, 
the  Earl  of  Angus  carrying  the  crown  before  them,  and  the  Earl 
of  Arran  the  scepter.  They  opened  the  Parliament,  the  Q,ueen 
behaving  with  all  gracious  familiarity  to  her  spouse,^  as  stipulated, 
and  her  favorites  and  ministers  following  her  example.  It  was 
noticed,  that  when  Clueen  Margaret  opened  Parliament,  Harry 
Stuart  attended  her  for  three  days  most  assiduously.  The  dis- 
pleasure of  the  Lords  of  the  Council,  however,  made  him  "  avoid 
privily"  (retire  privately),  and  he  went  off  to  the  Glueen's  for- 
tress, Stirling  Castle,  where  he  and  his  two  brothers  waited  her 
orders.'^ 

On  a  great  alarm  among  the  citizens  of  Edinburgh,  that  their 
young  King  was  about  to  be  carried  off  from  Holyrood  the  night 
he  came  down  from  the  castle,  the  dueen  took  him  and  resolved 
to  stay  with  him  in  the  very  heart  of  the  city,  where  they  re- 
mained until  they  went  a  progress  toward  Perth,  and  finally  took 
their  abode  at  their  palace  of  St.  Johnstoun.  Thither  the  Eng- 
lish ambassador  followed  her,  for  the  purpose  of  delivering  to  her 
letters  from  her  brother  Henry  VIII.  Of  the  reception  of  these 
he  gives  the  following  account : 

"  I  required  of  the  Glueen's  Grace  that  I  might  speak  with 
her  apart ;  and  so  I  did,  in  a  privy-chamber.  All  folks  avoided 
(retired)  but  only  her  Grace  and  myself;  and  thus  I  delivered 
her  my  King's  most  honorable  letters,  which  her  Grace  received 
in  full  honorable  manner.^  But  after  her  Grace  had  looked  over 
or  read  the  first  five  or  six  lines  of  the  same,  her  countenance 
altered  in  such  manner  that  it  was  a  full  hour  before  her  Grace 
could  sober  herself  from  excessive  weeping  ;  and  long  it  was,  and 
with  much  pain,  ere  that  her  Grace  could  read  the  letter  to  the 
end.  Some  words  were  between  us ;  but  howsoever  I  armed  me 
with  patience,  though  some  deal  cumbered  to  answer  her," 

Margaret's  first  comment  when  her  passion  of  crying  let  her 
speak,  was  "  Sure  never  was  such  a  letter  ever  written  to  any 
noble  woman." 

Magnus  recommended  patience,  and  to  read  Henry  YIII.'s  let- 
ter over  more  dispassionately,  and  to  bring  to  mind  her  own 
aggravating  epistle  which  had  provoked  it.     But  the  Glueen,  with 

1  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  334. 
^  State  Papers,  p.  339.     Magnus  to  Wolsey,  March  9. 
8  Ibid.  p.  348,  March  31,  1525. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  203 

many  "  hanght  and  high  words,  expressed  herself  much  against 
her  brother's  honor,  cried  out  on  his  wrong  in  sending  the  Earl 
of  Anguish  to  torment  her,  regretted  her  own  conduct  for  being 
too  easy  in  regard  to  the  said  earl,  and  finally,  declared  she 
would  send  none  ambassadors  to  England." 

Then  the  angry,  sobbing  Q.ueen  forbade  Magnus  to  bring  any 
more  such  letters  from  her  brother  for  her  to  read  ;  "  for,  if  she 
did  read  any  more,  she  was  right  sure  it  would  be  her  death  ;" 
and  long  she  raged  at  the  patient  man,  accusing  him  of  knowing 
the  tenor  of  the  letter,  and  of  causing  her  vexation — "  as  there 
were  matters  mentioned,  of  which  the  information  must  have 
proceeded  from  him." 

The  English  ambassador  left  dueen  Margaret  with  the  promise 
that  she  should  be  urged  no  longer  concerning  her  husband  until 
after  Whitsuntide,  when  she  expected  decision  from  Rome  on  her 
divorce.  He  went  to  the  opposite  party,  and  consulted  with 
Angus,  whose  chief  desire  was,  that  an  end  might  be  put  to  the 
restriction  Henry  VIII.  had  laid  upon  him,  not  to  seize  upon  any 
part  of  Q/Ueen  Margaret's  dower  lands,  from  which  he  had,  since 
his  return  to  Scotland,  unwillingly  abstained — avarice  rather 
than  ambition  being  his  leading  passion.  He,  with  the  lords  of 
his  party,  discussed  the  character  and  conduct  of  the  boy  King. 
Some  were  afraid  James  V.  would  prove  cruel ;  for,  said  they, 
"When  Glueen  Margaret  is  angry  with  any  of  us,  then  she  talks 
to  her  son  privily,  and  makes  him  sad  and  pensive,  and  to  look 
down,  and  gloom  and  glower  upon  us,  using  to  us  some  sour  and 
sharp  words."  ^  The  young  King  was  devotedly  attached  to  his 
mother,  and  was  inclmed  to  defy  and  hate  her  enemies,  and  to 
protect  her,  when  she  had  been  exciting  him  with  tales  of  her 
wrongs.  The  Earl  of  Angus  told  Magnus,  "  That  his  young 
King  was  right  well  pleased  with  him  in  all  matters  relating  to 
hawks  and  hounds  ;  but  of  late  the  Q,ueen  had  urged  her  son  to 
view  the  matter  of  divorce  as  she  wished  ;"  that  King  James 
had  earnestly  asked  him,  when  alone,  "to  be  divorced  from  his 
mother,  and  had  promised  him  boundless  favor,  when  he  came 
to  his  power,  if  he  would  consent." 

Strange   it  was,  that  such   a  subject  should  be  discussed  by 

either  Margaret  or  her  husband  to  a  boy  not  fourteen.     While 

these  proceedings  were  grieving  the  sensitive  feelings  of  national 

^  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  March  31,  1525.     State  Papers,  voL  iv.  p.  349,  350. 


204  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

honor,  ever  prevalent  among  tlie  people  of  Scotland,  their  honest 
pride  was  somewhat  soothed  by  the  noble  fidelity  their  late  Re- 
gent showed  to  Francis  I.  "  Here  hath  been  rumors  and  bruits, 
that  the  Duke  of  Albany  had  won  and  rescued  again  the  French 
King  being  right  joyous  tidings  here,  and  as  painful  to  me,  to  see 
and  hear  the  same."  '  Angus  was  sedulous  in  impressing  on  his 
royal  brother-in-law  of  England  an  amiable  description  of  his 
conduct  toward  his  refractory  spouse,  Glueen  Margaret.  "•  I 
have,"  he  says,'^  "please  your  Highness,  shown  humble  suit  and 
service  to  the  (Queen's  Grace,  your  sister ;  howbeit,  it  is  not  ac- 
cepted, but  she  remains  at  Stirling  away  from  her  son,  the  King's 
Grace  (James  V.),  and  is  ruled  against  me  with  ane  evil  counsel, 
against  the  law  of  God  and  holy  kirk  ;  as  God  knows,  I  have 
kept  my  part  toward  her,  as  I  promised  your  Grace,  and  to  my 
Lord  Cardinal,  and  aye  abode  at  his  and  your  commandment 
therein,  and  so  shall  continue." 

It  is  certain  that  if  dueen  Margaret  could  have  proved  the 
charge  of  previous  marriage  or  pre-contract  against  her  husband, 
she  would  not  have  had  recourse  to  a  pretext  futile  as  that  which, 
after  great  research.  Dr.  Magnus  discovered  was  her  plea  for 
divorce  at  Rome.  "The  dueen's  Grace,"  wrote  he,^  "  con- 
tinueth  still  at  Stirling,  and  sueth  fast  for  a  divorce  from  the 
Earl  of  Angus,  submitting  her  cause  to  be,  that  when  she  was 
married  to  the  said  earl,  the  late  King  of  Scots,  her  husband,  was 
alive  ;  and  that  the  said  King  was  living  three  years  after  the 
field  of  Flodden  or  Brankston."  Notwithstanding  this  discovery, 
made  by  Glueen  Margaret,  of  the  existence  of  the  first  husband, 
for  the  purpose  of  getting  rid  of  the  second.  Dr.  Magnus  remained 
earnestly  of  opinion  that  the  rights  of  the  Earl  of  Angus  should 
be  recognized  by  his  perverse  helpmate.  The  character,  indeed, 
that  the  learned  Doctor  is  pleased  to  give  the  Q,ueen's  repudiated 
husband  for  gentleness  and  submission,  makes  it  doubtful  matter 
if  she  could  ever  have  changed  for  the  better.  "  After  my  poor 
mind,  and  as  I  hear  her  Grace  will  say  that  '  she  dare  not  come 
hither  (to  Edinburgh),  for  dread  that  her  Grace  hath  of  the  Earl 
of  Anguish,'  whom,  if  it  would  please  her  Grace  to  accept  into 

^  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     State  Papers,  April  16,  1525. 
^  Angus  to  Henry  VIH..  Edinburgh,  June  8,  1525.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv. 
p.  378. 

°  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  June  23,  1525.    State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  385. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  205 

her  favor,  she  mought,  without  doabt,  better  order  for  his  gentle- 
ness tlian  I  can  rule  any  servant  I  have."  ^  Angus  v^^as  in  fact, 
at  the  very  time,  paramount  and  pre-eminent  over  the  Scotch 
Parliament,  then  about  to  conclude  its  session.  He  was  endeavor- 
ing to  entice  his  contumacious  spouse  into  his  presence,  by  insist- 
ing that  the  peace  between  England  and  Scotland  could  not  be 
concluded  without  her  assistance.  His  party  declared  that  "  if 
she  would  not  come,  she  must  be  deprived  of  her  authority, 
which  was  to  be  first  and  principal  of  the  council,  and  have  the 
disposal  of  all  benefices  ;  that  she  had  had  all  reasonable  safe- 
conducts  given,  and  if  she  would  not  attend,  she  must  forfeit  her 
dignities." 

The  young  King  of  Scotland,  when  tliis  resolution  was  being 
passed  into  an  act,  spoke  on  the  Subject,  to  the  admiration  of  all 
present.  "I  trust,"  said  the  royal  boy,  "that  the  Q.ueen,  my 
mother,  hath  not  so  highly  offended,  that  her  Grace  should  lose, 
or  be  put  from  her  authority;"  therefore,  he  required  "that  the 
act  might  be  respited,  or  put  in  some  better  train."  It  was  then 
resolved,  that  "if  the  Q,ueen,  within  twenty  days,  repaired  to  the 
King  her  son,  and  follows  the  advice  of  the  Council,  and  confirms 
the  peace,  the  act  against  her  shall  be  of  none  efiect — otherwise 
to  stand  in  full  strength." 

Margaret's  plea  was,  as  usual,  fear  of  being  in  the  presence  of 
Angus  ;  but  it  was  generally  whispered,  "  that  the  Glueen  was 
forced  to  retire  awhile,  on  account  of  the  birth  of  her  first  child, 
by  Harry  Stuart,  with  whom  she  had  made  secret  marriage." 
Before  the  month  expired,  the  Parliament  deprived  the  Q.ueen  of 
her  authority,  for  not  coming  to  open  it ;  but,  by  the  young 
King's  personal  entreaty,  "  another  twenty  days'  grace  were 
allowed  her  to  come  in."  Many  evil  reports  were  afloat,  con- 
cerning her  absence.  Magnus  again  affirmed,  "  that  as  to  being 
afraid  of  Angus,  it  was  well  known  she  might  rule  him  as  her 
servant,  if  she  would  be  kind  to  him."  ^  All  business  was  per- 
plexed. Magnus  wrote  an  urgent  letter  to  her.  He  told  her 
"  he  had  consulted  a  most  worshipful  gentlewoman,  late  mistress 
(governess)  to  the  young  King,  and  a  fast  friend  of  her  (Glueen 
Margaret),  who    declared   her   conviction,  that    coming  to  the 

^  Dr.  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  State  Papers,  published  by  Commission,  1830, 
vol.  i.  p.  385,  August  9,  1523. 

"^  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     State  Papers,  vol,  iv.  p.  400. 


206  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Parliament  at  Edinburgh  would  neither  bring  the  dueen-mother 
into  difficulty  or  danger."  The  young  King,  however,  Magnus 
owns,  thought  differently  ;  by  which  he  guessed  that  her  absence 
was  concerted  with  her  son.  Margaret  remained  in  the  north  of 
Scotland,  deaf  to  all  summons  from  Parliament,  husband,  brother, 
or  son.  The  next  news  regarding  her  was  that,  January  11, 
1525-G,  she  was  marching  southward  with  a  small  force  of  six 
hundred  men,  commanded  by  the  Earl  of  Murray,  and  was 
expected  to  do  a  great  deal  of  mischief  to  her  opponents.^  The 
approach  of  Margaret  and  her  army  took  place  January  20.  She 
trusted  that  the  Earl  of  Arran,  who  had  previously  withdrawn 
himself  from  iVngus's  government,  would  have  joined  her  with 
force  sufficient  to  have  taken  the  young  King  away  from  the 
Douglas  faction.  But  her  hated  husband,  instead  of  Arran,  met 
her  a  mile  from  Linlithgow,  accompanied  by  James  the  young 
King,  and  an  overpowering  army.  Margaret's  general,  the  Earl 
of  Murray,  instantly  went  over  to  the  force  which  ostensibly  bore 
his  King's  authority  ;  while  his  men,  taking  their  cue  from  their 
lord,  fraternized  with  Angus's  troopers.  The  lords  and  gentlemen 
of  Margaret's  party  offered  their  services  to  Angus,  and  they  all 
marched  merrily  to  Edinburgh.  "  As  for  the  (Queen's  Grace," 
wrote  Angus  to  Dr.  Magnus,  "  thare  sal  be  na  fait  funden  in  me, 
but  we  sal  agree  shortly,  as  understands  the  King's  highness  her 
son  ;  all  my  lords  here,  and  you  that  kens  her  part  and  mine  as 
well  as  our  sel."  ^  The  rage  of  Margaret  may  be  supposed  at 
the  turn  of  affairs  quietly  effected  by  her  spouse,  when  she  had 
been  six  months  in  the  north,  fomenting  a  revolution  which  was 
to  destroy  his  power.  Her  letters  to  Wolsey,  after  this  historical 
couj^de-th^atre  had  been  played  against  her,  by  the  cool  cunning 
of  her  husband,  are  for  some  months  very  dry  and  mysterious — 
their  chief  tenor  being  murmuring  at  Angus's  power,  and  urging 
that,  by  the  help  of  the  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  she  might 
have  more  authority  over  her  son  and  his  government. 

When  Q,ueen  Margaret  wrote  in  great  hurry,  her  orthography 
renders  her  letters  more  difficult  to  edit,  than  if  written  in  a 
foreign  language.  At  no  time  are  her  original  lucubrations 
more  uncouth  than  at  this  era.  If  these  lines  were  suddenly 
placed  before  any  one,  there  would  be  some  difficulty  in  ascer- 

1  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  January  11,  1525.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  432. 

2  Angus  to  Magnus,  January  20,  1525-6.     State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  438. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  207 

taining  which  among  the  tongues  of  Babel  the  writer  was 
inditing — 

"  ^yff'^^fy^^^  i^^^  ^(^yd  Bysdwpe  of  Saynt  Tandroz  he  ony 
vay  to  be  trio  tyll  otvz,  ve  had  lever  hav  hym,  bat  as  zet  I  can 
not  parsaff  it.  Titer  for,  vee  man  doo  as  ve  fynd  beast  for  oivz^ 
trostyng  that  the  Kyng's  Grace,  my  brethar,  vyl  suple  oivz, 
and  not  lat  oivz  vantr  ^ 

By  the  elegant  pronoun  "  owz,''  Q,ueen  Margaret  means  "  us;" 
and  her  hieroglyphics,  as  usual,  include  a  bitter  complaint  of  her 
husband,  and  an  intimation  that  a  subsidy  would  be  acceptable 
to  herself. 

The  Glueen,  the  Earl  of  Lennox,  and  the  Bishop  of  St.  Andrews, 
secretly  aided  by  the  young  King  himself,  commenced  a  struggle 
to  overcome  Angus.  Although  her  prime-minister  Arran,  out  of 
jealousy  of  his  relative,  the  Earl  of  Lennox,^  deserted  to  the  side 
of  Angus,  the  party  increased  every  day.  Lennox,  in  the  last 
days  of  August,  came  to  the  Borough  Moor,  near  Edinburgh, 
with  two  hundred  picked  men,  and  a  few  horsemen  leading  eight 
spare  horses,  upon  which  the  young  King  and  his  train  were  to 
escape.  The  Master  of  Kilmorris  entered  Holyrood  to  inform  the 
King.  Angus  learned  his  arrival.  Before  Kilmorris  could  be 
seized,  young  King  James  led  him  personally  "  through  the 
coining-house,"  and  thus  he  got  safely  out  of  Holyrood.  Angus 
forced  the  King  to  leave  Holyrood,  and  put  him  under  the  guard 
of  his  brother  George  and  forty  men,  at  a  house  of  the  Bishop  of 
St.  Andrews,  in  the  city,  where  he  was  watched  night  and  day,' 
About  a  week  afterward  the  belligerent  powers  came  to  collision  : 
the  King  expressed  a  wish  to  visit  his  mother  at  her  palace  of 
Linlithgow,  and  the  Douglas  put  a  little  army  in  motion  to  guard 
him  on  his  short  journey.  Near  Linlithgow,  at  the  bridge,  they 
encountered  the  Earl  of  Lennox  and  many  other  nobles  of  the 
(Queen's  party,  among  whom  were  Harry  Stuart  and  his  two 
brothers.  A  fierce  skirmish  ensued.  When  the  young  King, 
who  was  kept  back  with  the  rearguard,  manifested  eagerness  to 
ride  forward  into  the  fray,  George  Douglas,  in  whose  charge  he 
was  left,  thus  addressed  him,  "  Bide  where  you  are,  sir ;  for  if 
they  get  hold  of  you,  be  it  by  one  of  your  arms,  we  will  seize  a 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  403. 

^  Lennox  disputed  the  legality  of  Arran's  divorces  and  marriages. 

'  September  4,  1526.     Letter  of  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     Statfe  Papers. 


208  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

leg  and  pull  you  in  two  pieces  rather  than  part  from  you."  ^  A 
savage  speech  which  the  young  monarch  never  forgot.  The 
result  of  the  skirmish  was  disastrous  to  Glueen  Margaret's  faction  : 
the  Earl  of  Lennox,  her  most  respectable  partisan,  and  the  kins- 
man best  beloved  by  James  V.,  was  treacherously  slain  by  that 
promoter  of  all  mischief.  Sir  James  Hamilton. 

Although  full  of  sorrow,  the  (iueen  mounted  her  palfrey,  and 
set  out  for  Edinburgh,  November  20,  to  open  Parliament.  The 
Earl  of  Angus  leading  the  young  King  with  him,  met  his  contu- 
macious spouse  at  Corstorphine  :  here  he  received  her  with  the 
affectation  of  the  utmost  deference.  Her  train  was  small,  and  her 
attendance  mean,  for  most  of  her  friends  were  absent — some 
having  been  slain  at  the  "battle  of  the  bridge,"  near  Linlithgow, 
some  being  fugitives,  and  others  prisoners  to  her  husband.  Harry 
Stuart  was  wounded  ;  his  brothers  were  reported  slain.  She 
rode  by  the  side  of  her  son  to  Holy  rood,  where  she  was  inducted 
into  -  the  same  apartments  formerly  occupied  by  the  Duke  of 
Albany  when  Regent.  The  young  King  lodged  with  her,  and 
slept  in  a  room  over  her  bed-chamber ;  excepting  when  he  was 
hunting,  he  would  never  leave  her  company  for  a  moment.  "  It 
is  thought,"  wrote  Sir  C.  Dacre  to  his  brother,  "  that  if  the  Glueen 
remains  thus  near  her  son,  that  the  whole  court  will  have  a  turn  ; 
for  King  James,  since  the  death  of  the  Earl  of  Lennox,  has  no 
afiection  for  the  Earl  of  Angus  nor  him  of  Arran."  "^ 

The  New  Year's  Day  of  1526-7  was  certainly  kept  by  the 
royal  mother  and  son  at  Holyrood.  Evidence  exists  of  that  very 
rare  occurrence,  a  largess  from  the  hand  of  the  Gtueen.  A  co- 
temporary  poet,  Stuart  of  Lome,  one  of  her  court  versifiers,  cele- 
brates her  bounty  by  a  lay  of  gratitude  so  barbarous  in  its  word- 
ing, that  it  is  not  easy  to  give  an  idea  of  more  than  two  of  its 
lines : — 

"  Great  God  reward  Margaret  our  Queen 
For  largess  of  this  New  Year's  Day !"  ^ 

Both  Margaret  and  the  King  remained  ill  at  ease — James  V. 
in  deep  grief  for  the  death  of  his  beloved  kinsman,  the  Earl  of 

^  September  13,  1526.     Letter  of  Magnus  to  Wolsey.     State  Papers, 
2  Pinker  ton,  Appendix,  vol.  ii.  Dec.  1526. 

^  Quoted  by  Warton  as  an  ode  in  the  Scots  dialect  by  Stuart,  for  the 
New  Year  of  1527. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  209 

Lennox,  slain  in  the  endeavor  to  take  him  from  the  hated  control 
of  the  Douglas,  Margaret,  meantime,  was  meditating  other  en- 
terprises. Among  her  plans  she  intended  to  use  blood-hounds 
for  the  .means  of  either  attack  or  defense,  making  the  odd  request 
for  a  pair  of  these  creatures  trained  to  sit  behind  men  on  horse- 
back. It  was  addressed  to  her  old  friend  Magnus,  then  tutor  to 
the  young  Duke  of  Richmond,  in  his  magnificent  establishment 
of  SheriHe  Hutton,  Yorkshire. 

"Queen  Margaret  to  Dr.  Magnus, 
"  Right  trusty  and  well-beloved  Friend — We  commend  us  to  you  in  our 
most  hearty  manner,  praying  you  right  affectuously  that  you  will  get  and 
send  us  three  or  four  brace  of  the  best  ratclies  (harriers)  in  the  country,  less 
or  more,  for  hares,  foxes,  and  other  greater  beasts.  Witli  a  brace  of  blood- 
hounds that  are  good,  and  will  ride  behind  men  on  horseback ."  ^ 

Her  note  was  written  January  8,  1526-7,  Dr.  Magnus  treated 
the  dueen's  letter  and  message  to  SherifFe  Hutton  as  a  mere  pre- 
tense to  spy  out  the  particulars  of  young  Richmond's  almost  regal 
establishment  there.  Wolsey  ordered  Magnus  to  send  the  dogs  ; 
but  that  was  not  done  until  the  succeeding  year,  when  the  for- 
tunes of  the  royal  family  of  Scotland  obtained  the  ascendency  in 
the  struggle  that  ensued. 

Margaret's  present  object  was  to  arrive  at  some  decision  con- 
cerning her  divorce  ;  for  this  purpose  she  affected  to  be  on  very 
friendly  terms  with  Angus,  and  even  had  some  amicable  consul- 
tations^ with  him  on  the  subject.  Finding  the  delays  of  Rome 
interminable,  she  contrived  to  enlist  Beton,  Archbishop  of  St, 
Andrews,  on  her  side,  who  summoned  Angus  to  hear  his  divorce 
from  the  Q.ueen  pronounced  according  to  the  laws  of  the  Church. 
He  appeared  on  the  day  appointed  at  the  Consistorial  Court  of 
St.  Andrews,  Then  the  Gtueen  alledged  "  that  he  had  been  be- 
trothed, and  given  his  faith  and  promise  of  marriage  to  a  noble 
lady  (some  say  a  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Traquair,  and  others  of 
Earl  Bothwell)  before  he  had  married  her  (the  Q,ueen),  and  so 
by  reason  of  that  pre-contract  he  could  not  be  her  lawful  husband," 
The  earl  confessed  all.  Upon  which  the  archbishop  pronounced 
sentence  of  divorce,  making  a  proviso,  "  that  the  daughter  born  of 
the  Q.ueen  should  not  suffer  loss  or  disadvantage"^  from  the  ig- 
norance of  her  mother  of  the  father's  pre-engagement, 

^  State  Papers,  vol,  v.  Jan.  1526-7. 

^  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol,  ii,  p.  572.  *  Ibid. 


210  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

The  legality  of  this  sentence  was  immediately  disputed ;  the 
flaw  appears  to  have  been  the  uncertainty  which  of  the  two  noble 
kdies,  Janet  Douglas  or  Margaret  Hepburn,  was  Kng\i&' s  fiancee 
when  he  wedded  the  Glueen.  There  is  nothing  definite,  there- 
fore, alledged  in  any  of  the  sentences  of  divorce.  Another  passed 
later  in  the  course  of  the  same  year,  dated  at  Ancona,  in  which 
the  Pope  mentions  the  marriage  as  infirm  and  bad,  but  gives  no 
specific  reason  why  it  was  so.^  Previously,  however,  to  the  Papal 
decision,  we  find  that  Turenne,  the  French  ambassador  at  the 
Court  of  London,  writes  a  most  remarkable  letter  to  the  Regent 
Albany,  dated  May  1,  1527,  in  which  he  gives  the  following  de- 
tails of  a  conversation  that  passed  between  him  and  Henry  VIII., 
on  the  subject  of  (olueen  Margaret's  desire  of  going  to  France  to 
prosecute  her  divorce  : — 

"  On  Sunday,"  says  he,  "  the  King  of  England  sent  for  me ;  and  after  put- 
ting several  questions,  he  demanded  of  me  and  my  associates,  '  if  we  had 
informed  the  King  his  brother  of  what  he  told  us  through  the  Cardinal 
(Wolsey),  touching  his  sister  the  Queen  of  Scotland,  for  that  he  understood 
she  was  meditating  a  journey  to  France,  to  endeavor  to  induce  our  King  to 
use  his  influence  with  our  Holy  Father  to  get  her  divorced  from  Monsieur 
d'Angou  (the  Earl  of  Angus),  in  order  to  marry  you.'  He  told  me  it  was 
most  displeasing  to  him  to  learn  the  foolish  and  evil  conduct  of  his  said  sis- 
ter, for  she  made  herself  a  shame  and  disgrace  to  all  her  family ;  declaring 
'  that  it  was  impossible  for  any  one  to  lead  a  more  shameful  life  than  she  did.' "  ^ 

The  envoy  replied  that  he  was  sure  his  King  was  the  last 
person  in  the  world  to  encourage  so  near  a  relation  to  the  King 
of  England  in  coming  into  his  realm,  against  the  will  of  her  royal 
brother ;  and  that  the  Duke  of  Albany  was  the  last  person  to  do 
any  thing  that  was  unpleasant  to  him.  Henry  then  admitted  that 
Albany  was  a  wise  and  good  Prince  ;  adding,  however,  "  that  he 
thought  his  nephew  was  old  enough  to  govern  without  further 
tutelage  ;  but  certainly,  of  all  tutelage,  that  of  the  Glueen  his 
sister  was  the  worst  that  young  Prince  could  have." 

Previously  to  the  papal  sentence  of  divorce,  Margaret  had 
endeavored  to  act  on  that  of  the  Archbishop  ;  "  and  when  she 
visited  her  son,  who  was  at  that  time  completely  in  the  power  of 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  490  ;  April. 

^  Lettre  de  M.  de  Turenne  au  Due  dAlbany,  en  Archives  du  Royaume  de 
France.  Printed  in  Pieces  et  Documens  Inedits,  relatifs  a  I'Histoire 
d'Ecosse — unpublished. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  211 

Angus,  she  asked  him  leave  to  let  Harry  Stuart  come  to  his  court 
and  remain  with  him."  The  young  King  flatly  refused,  and 
Q,ueen  Margaret  departed  out  of  humor  with  her  son,  and  apj^a- 
'rently  out  of  favor  with  him/  James  V.  was  certainly  highly 
displeased  at  the  idea  of  the  second  stepfather  with  which  his 
dueen-mother  had  provided  him  :  he  had  more  than  enough 
trouble  with  the  first,  who  at  that  time  held  him  virtually  a  cap- 
tive, after  having  slain  his  best  loved  kinsman.  Neither  was  it 
very  probable  that  Angus,  who  ruled  every  thing  at  court,  could 
permit  Harry  Stuart,  his  rival,  to  appear  there  as  dueen  Marga- 
ret's acknowledged  lord.  On  her  next  visit  to  her  son,  April,  1 527, 
she  required  license  for  her  new  husband's  appearance  there, 
which  James  totally  refused,  at  the  instance  of  Lord  Angus,  upon 
which  the  Q,ueen  again  retired  from  court  in  disgust  to  Stirling 
Castle.' 

It  is  surprising  how  little  notice  general  history  takes  of  Glueen 
Margaret's  proceedings  in  the  north  of  the  island  in  that  momen- 
tous year  in  which  the  divorce  of  Katharine  of  Aragon  was  first 
agitated.  So  far  from  pleading  the  excuse  of  his  sister's  long- 
pending  divorce,  Henry  was  heartily  ashamed  of  the  false  position 
in  which  he  exhibited  himself  in  the  eyes  of  the  courts  of  Europe, 
as  if  he  aped  Margaret's  disreputable  proceedings.  It  is  curious 
enough  to  find  him  urging  Wolsey  perpetually  to  delay  his  sister's 
divorce  at  the  Court  of  Rome,  which  was  done  with  such  success 
that,  of  course,  he  became  furiously  suspicious  that  similar  means 
were  used  when  his  own  turn  came.^  There  is  a  letter  from 
Margaret  to  Albany,  dated  March  23,  1528,  in  which  she  thanks 
him  in  the  warmest  terms,  not  only  for  having  used  his  influence 
at  Rome  in  furthering  her  affair,  as  she  styles  the  sentence  of 
divorce  from  Angus,  but  for  furnishing  her  with  the  money  ne- 
cessary to  obtain  the  completion  of  that  business;*  "  for  which 
services,"  she  says — 

"  I  give  you  a  hundred  thousand  thauks,  and  trust  the  time  will  one  day 

I  Correspondence  of  Dr.  Magnus  with  Wolsey.  Cottonian  MS.,  March  6, 
1526-7. 

^  Magnus  to  Wolsey,  Calig.  B.  iii.  p.  301. 

^  Lord  Herbert  of  Cherbury  alone  mentions  Margaret's  proceedings,  but 
with  great  caution,  though  he  wrote  as  late  as  the  reign  of  James  I. 

*  Pieces  et  Documens  Inedits,  relatifs  a  I'Histoire  d'Ecosse — in  the  Archives 
of  the  Kingdom  of  France. 


212  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

come  when  I  may  return  the  pleasure  you  have  done  me,  and  praying  you, 
Monsieur  my  cousin,  as  the  person  I  have  more  affiance  in  than  any  other 
man  in  the  world,  except  my  dearest  son,  both  for  the  love  of  me,  and  to  put 
an  end  of  all  the  torments  and  tribulations  I  suffer,  and  for  the  happy  ad- 
vancement of  all  the  other  matters  between  you  and  me,  that  you  will  be 
pleased  to  expedite  the  completion  of  my  sentence,  and  the  process;  to  send 
to  me  into  Scotland  as  quickly  as  possible,  and  to  supply  me  with  the  money 
that  will  be  needful  and  requisite,  till  God  is  pleased  to  grant  me  of  his  grace 
the  means  of  recompensing  you  for  the  said  moneys,  and  all  the  gratuities 
and  benefactions  you  have  aided  me  with  in  times  past." 

She  goes  on  to  say — 

"  I  am  informed  to-day  by  your  servant  and  secretary,  Nicholas  Canyvet, 
that  a  captain  named  William  Stuart,  with  another  gentleman,  have  been 
sent  by  you  to  my  son  with  all  sorts  of  horses,  and  other  beautiful  presents, 
which  I  can  assure  you  will  be  very  agreeable  to  him;  and  I  should  have 
written  to  you  for  things  of  that  kind  a  long  time  ago,  if  I  had  not  been  hin- 
dered as  I  have  told  you  in  my  last  letters,  and  forasmuch  as  I  hoped  to  get 
a  full  answer  to  my  last  letters  by  the  said  captain,  both  from  the  King  of 
France  and  yourself.  The  said  news  (about  the  divorce)  are  to  me  very 
joyous :  all  the  letters  that  you  may  be  pleased  to  send  me,  can  be  kept  in 
charge  by  your  secretary,  the  Dean  of  Dunbar,  or  by  some  other  equal  sure 
and  secret  channel,  on  the  subject  that  you  have  written  to  me  in  your  last 
letters.  As  to  any  other  news,  I  must  refer  you  to  your  servant  Nicholas, 
desiring  above  all  things  to  have  my  said  sentence  and  process.  Written  at 
iStrimmg  (Sth-ling),  this  23d  day  of  March,  by 

"  Your  good  cousin, 

"  Margaret." 

Postscript  ill  the  dueen's  own  hand — 

"  Monsieur  my  cousin,  I  beg  you  to  excuse  the  whole  letter  not  being 
written  by  my  own  hand ;  but  have  me  and  my  business  in  your  remem- 
brance.    I  remain,  to  the  utmost  of  my  power, 

"  Your  good  cousin, 

"Margarite."! 

In  the  seal  to  this  letter,  Margaret  impales  the  royal  arms  of 
Scotland  with  those  of  England.  Margaret,  on  the  promulgation 
of  the  above-mentioned  Ancona  divorce,  being  then  at  StirUng 
Castle,  publicly  declared  herself  married  to  Harry  Stuart,  and  had 
him  treated  as  her  lord  and  husband  by  her  whole  household  ;  on 
which  intelligence  the  young  King,  in  great  displeasure,  sent 

^  Pieces  et  Documens  Inedits,  relatifs  a  I'Histoire  d'Ecosse — in  the  Ar- 
chives of  the  Kingdom  of  France. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  213 

Lord  Erskine  with  a  troop  of  soldiers  to  besiege  Stirling.  Marga- 
ret immediately  surrendered  her  husband,  who  was  forthwith 
marched  away  captive,  and  put  into  prison.  He  soon  escaped 
from  his  captivity  ;  and  the  next  appearance  of  this  gentleman  is 
in  Edinburgh  Castle,  the  (dueen  having  again  retreated  to  that 
impregnable  fortress,  which  was  still  garrisoned  in  her  name  as 
dueen  Regent ;  and  from  thence  she  defied  her  first  husband,  and 
all  his  doings. 

Angus  considered  it  requisite  to  reduce  her  pride,  for,  in  the 
course  of  the  preceding  year,  he  had  found  many  symptoms  of  his 
own  unpopularity.  Every  one  in  Scotland  was  looking  forward 
to  the  majority  of  their  young  sovereign,  who  had  now  entered 
his  seventeenth  year.  Although  James  V.'s  moral  character  had 
been  systematically  impaired  by  the  policy  of  Angus,  and  the 
base  agency  of  Sir  James  Hamilton,  yet  great  ability,  and  a 
latent  principle  of  rectitude,  were  known  to  be  inherent  in  the 
royal  youth.  He  had  been  for  some  months  separated  from  his 
mother,  and  his  first  interview  with  her  was  a  strange  scene,  but 
such  as  she  had  played  more  than  once  in  the  coursis  of  her 
tumultuous  career  at  the  far-famed  castled  rock  of  Edinburgh. 
Angus  marched  there  with  a  large  force,  and  brought  the  young 
King  along  with  him ;  and  in  his  name,  March  27,  1528, 
summoned  Clueen  Margaret  to  surrender  Edinburgh  Castle  and 
her  pretended  husband,  Harry  Stuart  of  Evandale,  to  the  King's 
mercy.  As  soon  as  the  Q,ueen  saw  that  her  son  was  actually 
present,  she  came  down  from  Edinburgh  Castle  in  great  haste, 
accompanied  by  Harry,  and  his  brother  James  Stuart.  Falling 
on  her  knees  before  her  son,  Angus  standing  by,  she  humbly  asked 
mercy  "  for  her  husband  and  his  brother."  ^  They  were,  however, 
notwithstanding  all  her  humiliations,  led  away  as  prisoners  into 
the  very  castle  she  had  just  yielded.  As  for  herself,  she  was 
treated  by  Angus  with  the  grimace  of  great  respect.  The  King 
her  son  rode  by  her  steed  in  the  pacific  entry  she  made  into 
Edinburgh— the  leading  power  in  the  scene  being  her  former 
husband,  with  whom  she  had  afterward  many  private  conferences 
and  consultations.^  Yet  all  the  civil  deceitfulness  of  Angus  could 
not  disguise  li-om  Ctueen  Margaret  the  plots   and  plans  he  was 

1  Lesley's  Hist.  p.  140. 

"^  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  572,  and  State  Papers.  Magnus's  Letters, 
vol.  V. 


214  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

devising  against  her  income  and  liberty.  Soon  after  her  surren- 
der of  Edinburgh  Castle,  she  retired  to  her  usual  residence,  Stirling 
Castle,  but  when  there  she  received  mysterious  intimation  from 
Archbishop  Beton  that  she.  was  not  safe.  She  fled  in  disguise 
from  it,  dispersed  her  household,  and,  for  the  first  time,  Stirling 
Castle  was  left  desolate,  without  garrison  or  inmates — as  it  is  at 
present,  the  wisdom  of  which  piece  of  state  economy  no  historian 
who  deals  in  facts  can  greatly  commend. 

What  became  of  Margaret  can  only  be  guessed  in  the  few 
vague  words  of  Lindsay's  Chronicle.^  "  The  Douglases,"  he 
says,  "  ever  took  high  upon  them,  and  now  they  specially  frighted 
Bishop  Beton,  so  that  he  fled  away  and  durst  not  be  seen  ;  and  so 
did  Margaret  the  Glueen  of  Scotland,  who  gaed  vagrant,  disguised 
ane  long  time  for  fear  of  the  Douglas  faction.  They  took  the 
King  to  St.  Andrews,  and,  in  his  name,  caused  great  search  to  be 
made  for  them.  As  for  the  Bishop,  it  was  known  afterward  that 
he  kept  sheep  in  Boigremoir  with  ane  shepherd's  clothes  upon 
him." 

It  is  a  grief  to  her  biographer  that  Margaret's  disguise  and 
occupations,  when  she  "gaed  vagrant,"  can  not  be  described  with 
equal  accuracy.  But  that  close  delineator.  Dr.  Magnus,  at  this 
time  ceased  to  witness  the  scenes  of  her  varied  life.  Dacre  was 
dead ;  and  Norfolk,  that  other  state-paper  chronicler,  is  too  busy 
raising  his  niece  to  the  throne-matrimonial  of  England,  and 
shaking  the  long-established  sway  of  the  mighty  Cardinal  Wolsey, 
to  have  a  thought  to  spare  for  dueen  Margaret  vagabonding  in 
the  wilderness.  Whether  she,  as  well  as  her  ally  Beton,  kept 
sheep  in  the  mosses  and  moors  can  not  be  asserted.  One  thing, 
however,  is  certain,  her  pen  was  forced  to  rest  idle  for  a  while. 
In  truth,  she  is  best  to  be  traced  in  the  plots  that  began  to  herald 
the  coming  revolution,  which  overthrew  the  power  of  Angus. 

The  worst  feature  of  the  Douglas  domination  was  the  murder 
of  the  proto-martyr  of  the  Reformed  Church  of  Scotland,  the  mild 
Patrick  Hamilton,  Abbot  of  Fern,  who  was  burned  at  St.  Andrews 
in  1527,  being  a  victim  to  an  agreement  of  reconciliation  which 
took  place  between  the  usurpers  and  Archbishop  Beton.  Other 
horrid  persecutions  followed  of  the  same  nature,  which  formed 
precedents  for    continuation.     The    commencement  of  this  bad 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  p.  329. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  215 

work,  it  is  but  just  to  observe,  occurred  when  James  Y.  was  a 
prisoner  to  Angus,  and  his  mother  a  fugitive. 

The  royal  striphng  now  fast  advanced  to  a  period  of  life  when 
his  high  spirit  and  princely  courage  could  no  longer  be  controlled. 
His  mother's  servants,  emboldened  by  his  approach  to  manhood, 
crept  out  of  their  lurking-places,  and,  by  degrees,  brought  military 
stores  and  provisions  into  her  palace  of  Stirling  Castle,  till  about 
May-day,  1528,  it  was  found  to  be  thoroughly  garrisoned.^  James 
v.,  being  then  in  the  course  of  his  seventeenth  year,  resolved  to 
deliver  himself  and  his  people  from  the  Douglas  yoke  :  he  saw  the 
advantage  of  having  such  a  fortress  as  Stirling  for  his  retreat 
when  his  project  for  a  struggle  with  his  first  step-father,  Angus, 
was  ripe.  However,  he  was  forced  to  compromise  with  his 
mother's  passions  and  predilections  ;  she  had  longed  for  the  lord- 
ship of  Methven  wherewith  to  endow  her  favorite  Harry  Stuart, 
who  had  escaped  to  her,  and  was  very  active  in  arranging  the 
approaching  struggle  for  the  King. 

James  V,,  being  at  Falkland  Palace,  contrived  to  negotiate 
with  his  mother  the  exchange  of  the  Castle  of  Stirling,  on  which 
she  still  held  claim  during  his  minority,  for  his  castle  and  demesne 
of  Methven.'^  When  the  agreement  was  completed  between  the 
mother  and  son,  young  James  rode  over  one  night  from  Falkland 
to  Stirling  with  a  few  of  his  most  confidential  servants,^ — was 
admitted  by  the  Glueen's  garrison, — barred  out  all  that  were  out, 
raised  the  regal  standard  over  the  lofty  citadel,  and  issued  his 
royal  summonses  for  all  his  loyal  lieges  to  attend  him  at  Stirling — 
the  faction  of  the  Douglases  being  excepted  as  traitors.  From 
that  moment  the  young  sovereign  was  free. 

Methven  was  an  ancient  possession  of  the  Kings  of  Scotland, 
and  had  been  the  dower-castle  and  demesne  of  the  Princess 
Margery  Bruce  (daughter  to  the  Great  King  Robert),  who  finally 
brought  the  crown  of  Scotland  into  the  family  of  her  husband, 
Walter  Stuart.  Methven  is  situated  to  the  north  of  the  Ochil 
Hills,  and  to  the  south  of  the  Grampians,  in  the  county  of  Perth, 
and  is  distant  six  miles  from  the  town  of  Perth."*  James  V.  kept 
faith  with  his  mother,  and  in  the  year  1528,  separated  Methven 

^  Buchanan,  p.  158,  book  xiv.  Lesley,  p.  139.  Lindsay  says  September 
was  the  month. 

2  Godscroft,  p.  257.  ^  Ibid.  p.  256. 

*  Topographical  History  of  Scotland,  by  S.  Lewis,  vol.  ii. 


216  -  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

forever  from  the  crown  of  Scotland,  and  settled  it  on  her  hushand, 
whom  he  raised  to  the  peerage  by  the  title  of  Lord  Methven,  with 
entail  on  his  heirs-male.  Margaret,  who  became  in  time  the 
mother  of  a  son  and  daughter  by  Harry  Stuart,  took  up  her  resi- 
dence at  Methven  Castle,  which  may  henceforth  be  considered  her 
home  when  she  did  not  occupy  her  suite  of  apartments  at  Holy- 
rood  or  Stirling. 

She  had  now  obtained  the  end  for  which  she  had  anxiously 
striven  for  more  than  eight  years.  Her  son  had  acknowledged 
her  divorce,  by  his  recognition  and  favor  to  her  dear  Harry 
Stuart,  who  was,  from  a  younger  brother  and  needy  courtier, 
raised  to  high  rank,  with  the  fairest  barony  in  Scotland  for  his 
inheritance,  and  that  of  their  children.  Her  inimical  husband, 
Angus,  was  soon  afterward  chased  out  of  the  land  into  exile  in 
England.  Angus  had  impoverished  the  Glueen  by  seizing,  as  her 
husband,  the  lands  with  which  she  had  been  richly  endowed  by 
the  crown  of  Scotland  on  her  marriage  with  James  IV.  It  may 
be  freely  inferred  that  he  was  forced  to  yield  up  this  prey,  for  on 
his  flight  to  Henry  VIII.  the  young  King  took  possession  of  his 
vast  property,  and  divided  it  among  those  who  had  aided  in  the 
overthrow  of  the  Douglas  power.  It  was  not  likely  that  the 
King  forgot  to  restore  his  mother  to  her  dower  lands.  But  Henry 
VIII.  treated  his  sister's  divorce  from  Angus  with  the  utmost 
contempt,  reviled  her  new  spouse,  speaking  of  him  disdainfully 
as  "Lord  Muffin,"^  while  he  called  Angus  his  dear  brother-in- 
law.  Margaret  was,  however,  relieved  of  the  presence  of  her 
troublesome  spouse  for  life  :  she  was  full  of  fondness  and  grati- 
tude to  Lord  Methven  for  the  assistance  he  had  rendered  her  son, 
whom  she  persuaded  to  settle  on  him  for  life  the  castellanship  of 
her  dower  castle  of  Doune,  in  the  county  of  Perth.  James  V. 
likev/ise  made  his  new  step-father  general  of  all  his  artillery — re- 
garding him  with  constant  favor,  which  he  well  deserved  by  his 
fidelity.  Soon  after  Lord  Methven  obtained  leave  of  his  sover- 
eign to  relinquish  Doune  Castle  in  favor  of  his  landless  brother, 
James  Stuart,  who  had  served  the  King  faithfully,  and  even  been 
left  for  dead  at  the  battle  near  Linlithgow,  James  V.,  with  all 
the  generosity  of  his  nature,  alienated  Doune  from  the  crown, 
and  settled  it  on  Methven' s  brother,  to  the  rage  and  indignation 

1  Letter  of  Henry  VIII.  Halliwell's  Letters  of  the  Kings  of  England,  vol. 
ii.  p.  276. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  217 

of  Glueen  Margaret,  who  did  not  mean  to  lose  the  income  when 
she  settled  it  on  her  new  spouse.  It  was  a  first  quarrel  between 
her  and  her  dear  Harry  Stuart ;  but  the  offense  remained  brood- 
ing in  her  mind  until  it  broke  out,  long  years  afterward,  accord- 
ing to  the  malicious  nature  of  the  Tudor  race. 

"  All  the  time  the  Court  was  in  Edinburgh,  a  nightly  watch 
was  kept  about  the  King's  chamber,  and  even  round  his  bed,  by 
his  lords  and  the  Sheriff  of  Ayr.  One  night  the  King  kept 
watch  himself  in  array  (armor),  expecting  an  inbreak  of  the 
Earl  of  Angus  and  his  party.  Upon  Tuesday  last,"  continues 
our  authority,  "  the  dueen,  with  the  young  King,  removed  to 
Stirling  for  greater  security."^ 

Angus  thought  fit  to  suppose  that  his  daughter  by  the  Glueen 
was  included  in  the  proscription  of  all  who  bore  his  name,  and 
when  the  young  King  marched  to  besiege  Tantallan,  the  Earl 
fled  from  thence  with  her.  (dueen  Margaret  and  James  V., 
knowing  that  she  was  wandering  from  castle  to  castle  on  the 
English  border,  made  sedulous  exertions  to  recover  her  from  her 
father,  that  she  might  be  placed  in  the  royal  establishment  ;  but 
without  effect.  The  incidents  of  this  lady's  eventful  life  and 
fortunes  form  the  subject  of  a  distinct  biography. 

Angus  and  his  brother,  George  Douglas,  finally  retired  with 
her  to  the  English  court.  Before,  however,  the  Douglases  were 
admitted  into  England,  they  had  to  swear  fealty  to  Henry  VIII. 
as  sovereign-paramount  of  Scotland.'^  That  monarch,  in  return, 
gave  the  Douglas  brothers  seats  at  his  privy-council,  where,  for 
many  years,  they  continued  to  do  as  much  injury  to  their  native 
land  as  possible.  Magnus,  the  fast  friend  of  Angus,  wrote  to 
Margaret  under  the  pretense  of  sending  her  "  the  loving  com- 
mendations of  his  master,  her  right  dear  and  tender  nephew  the 
Duke  of  Richmond  and  Somerset,"  resident  at  Sherifte  Hutton, 
in  Yorkshire  (once  the  doleful  prison-fortress  of  Margaret's 
mother  in  the  days  of  Richard  III.).  Richmond  had  lately  sent 
to  his  cousin,  the  King  of  Scotland,  the  ratches,  fox-hounds,  and 
harriers  she  had  asked  for,  likewise  those  accomplished  animals 
"  the  blood-hounds,  trained  to  ride  behind  men-at-arms  on  horse- 
back," whether  on  pillions  like  ladies  is  a  question  left  to  the  de- 
cision of  our  learned  friends  the  antiquaries. 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.     Letter  of  Williara  Dord  Dacre. 
^  Ibid.     Lord  Eure  to  "Wolsey,  vol.  iv.,  Sept.  1528. 
VOL.  I. K 


218  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

"  The  dear  and  tender  nephew"  must  have  been  a  subject  of 
great  jealousy  to  Margaret,  because  his  royal  titles  and  great 
establishment  plainly  showed  that,  in  case  of  failure  of  legiti- 
mate children,  Henry  VIII.  meant  to  appoint  him  as  his  successor. 
The  boy,  however,  was  made  by  Dr.  Magnus  to  plead,  as  by 
messages  throughout  a  long  letter  penned  by  the  latter  in  his 
name,  "  that  his  aunt,  the  (dueen  of  Scots,  would  please  to  re- 
lent, and  not  utterly  ruin  a  great  noble  of  ancient  blood  like  the 
Earl  of  Angus."  Margaret,  who  had  returned  to  Edinburgh, 
wrote  in  answer,  acknowledging  the  kindness  of  "  the  dear  and 
tender  nephew,"  but  explained  ^ — 

"  How  much  she  marveled  that  the  King  his  father,  and  himself,  had 
such  great  regard  for  the  Lord  Angus,  when  we  that  is  his  nahtrcd  sister 
sustain  sucli  great  dolor  and  wrong.  Ve  greatly  marvel,  considering  his 
offenses  made  to  us,  he  (Angus)  has  not  applied  him  to  give  us  good  cause 
to  continue  gude  princess  to  him,  which  had  been  his  high  honor  and  special 
duty,  having  remembrance  of  the  great  honor  we  did  iintil  him." 

The  Glueen  then  addressed  a  long  family  explanation  to  her 
nephew,  Richmond,  declaring  the  injuries  done  her  by  Angus, 
especially  in  tearing  her  "  only  daughter  attouce  (at  twice)  from 
her,  who  would  not  have  been  disinherited  had  she  remained  to 
her  comfort."  Margaret  makes  a  distinct  paragraph  to  "her 
gude  and  right  trast  friend,  Master  Magnus,"  assuring  him  that 
she  bears  no  rancor  to  the  said  Earl  of  Angus  ;  and  as  a  proof 
that  she  wished  him  well,  she  advised  him  to  keep  safely  in 
England  out  of  the  way  of  the  King  her  son,  and  then  in  time 
he  may  recover  his  favor." 

During  the  disturbances  that  had  distracted  Scotland  while 
Margaret  had  been  struggling  for  the  regnant  power  with  Albany 
and  Angus,  few  notations  exist  of  entertainments  or  fetes.  But 
as  soon  as  the  young  King  was  invested  with  his  premature  au- 
thority, affairs  took  a  different  aspect.  The  most  noted  of  the 
court  fetes  was  a  grand  Highland  hunting  given  by  Q.ueen  Mar- 
garet's old  friend,  the  Earl  of  AthoU,  to  her  Majesty,  in  honor 
of  the  arrival  of  the  Pope's  envoy  at  the  court  of  Scotland.  At 
Atholl  the  Earl  received  the  dueen-mother.  King  James  V.,  and 
the  Pope's  envoy,  in  the  forest,  with  a  degree  of  splendor  that, 

^  Margaret  to  Magnus.  State  Papers,  vol.  iv.  p.  533.  Edinburgh,  Nov. 
21. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  219 

as  the  young  monarch  declared,  left  him  nothing  to  regret  at 
Edinburgh  Castle.  "  AthoU  had  prepared  for  the  (olueen  and 
her  son  fair  a  palace,  built  in  the  midst  of  a  green  meadow  ;  the 
structure  was  made  of  fresh  boughs,  neatly  wattled  with  birks, 
which  were  green  under  and  above."  This  palace  was  divided 
in  four  quarters,  and  in  each  quarter  a  circular  room  like  a  block- 
house, "  which  was  lofted  the  height  of  three  houses  ;  the  floors 
were  laid  with  green  scarets,  sjyreats,  mechvorts,  and  flowers, 
that  no  man  knew  whereon  he  trod,  but  as  if  he  were  in  a  gar- 
den. The  palace  within  was  hung  with  fine  tapestry  and  arras, 
and  lighted  with  fine  glass  windows  at  all  airths,  and  it  was  as 
pleasantly  decorated  as  if  it  had  been  the  palace-royal  at  home." 

"  Further,  this  Earl  gart  make  such  provisions  for  the  King 
and  his  mother  Glueen  Margaret,  and  the  ambassador,  that  they 
had  all  manner  of  meats,  drinks,  and  delicates,  that  were  to  be 
gotten  at  that  time  in  Scotland,  either  in  burgh  or  land — that  is 
to  say,  all  kind  of  drink,  as  ale,  beer,  wine,  both  white  and  claret, 
malmsey,  muscadil,  ypocras,  aquavitae.  Further,  there  was  of 
meats,  wheat  bread,  maise  bread,  and  gingerbi'ead  ;  with  fleshes, 
beef,  muttons,  lambs,  venison,  goose,  grice  (pig),  capon,  coney, 
crane,  swan,  partridge,  plover,  duck,  drake,  bussel-cock  and  paicnes 
(blackcock  and  moorfowl),  and  also  the  stanks  (tanks  or  ponds) 
round  about  the  palace  were  full  of  all  delicate  fishes,  as  salmons, 
trouts,  eels,  and  all  that  could  be  gotten  out  of  fresh  water,  all 
ready  for  the  banquet.  Syne  there  were  proper  stewards,  cun- 
ning baxters  (bakers),  excellent  cooks  and  potingers,  with  con- 
fections and  drugs  for  the  King  and  the  Glueen's  desserts.  And 
the  halls  and  chambers  were  prepared  with  costly  beds,  naperies, 
and  vessels,  according  for  a  Q,ueen  ;  so  that  Clueen  Margaret 
wanted  of  her  orders  no  more  than  when  at  home  in  her  palace. 
The  King  and  his  royal  mother  abode  in  that  wilderness  at  the 
hunting  three  days  and  nights,  there  being  no  town  nearer  than 
twenty  miles  on  each  side  of  them."  Among  their  bills  of  fare 
appears  the  item  of  "  roasted  termagants  ;"  but  this  alarming 
dish  is  supposed  merely  to  imply  roasted  ptarmigans.  The  Earl 
of  Atholl  expended  one  thousand  pounds  ^  per  day  on  this  regal 
fete  in  the  solitudes  of  the  Highlands.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that 
they  were  pounds  Scots. 

As  dueen  Margaret  and  her  son  paused  on  their  homeward 
*  Luidsay  of  Pitscottie. 


220  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

journey,  to  cast  a  last  look  at  their  flowery  palace  in  the  wilder- 
ness, flames  were  seen  to  enwrap  it  of  a  sudden.  The  Pope's 
envoy  could  not  suppress  an  exclamation  of  surprise  and  regret. 
"  It  is  the  custom  of  our  Highland-men,"  replied  the  young  King. 
"  Be  they  never  so  well  lodged  at  night,  they  burn  their  lodging 
the  next  morn."  The  Q.ueen  and  her  son  hunted  in  the  High- 
lands at  various  stations  til]  Michaelmas,  at  which  festival  they 
were  the  guests  of  Archbishop  Beton  at  St.  Andrews. 

The  young  King  entirely  emancipated  himself  from  the  weak 
control  of  his  mother  when  he  attained  his  eighteenth  year,  the 
period  of  his  majority.  He  then  advanced  to  great  honor  one  to 
whom  he  owed  infinite  obligations  :  this  was  Sir  David  Lindsay. 
In  the  course  of  the  year  1530,  James  V.  drew  this  inestimable 
friend  of  his  infancy  from  retirement,  by  making  him  Lord  Lion 
King-at-arms — not  by  the  recommendation  of  his  Glueen-mother, 
as  may  very  well  be  supposed. 

A  most  flattering  embassy  was  sent  to  Henry  VIII.  in  the  course 
of  the  next  year,  when  he  found  that  the  young  King's  govern- 
ment was  too  strong  to  be  reversed.  Lord  William  Howard 
appeared  at  the  palace  of  St.  Andrews,  where  was  abiding  the 
King  of  Scotland,  with  a  train  of  threescore  cavaliers,  many  of 
whom  were  noted  as  the  most  skillful  in  all  games  of  manly  sport, 
as  shooting,  leaping,  wrestling,  quoits,  or  casting  of  stones.  Ciueen 
Margaret  was  witness  to  all  the  trials  of  skill  to  which  the  Eng- 
lishmen challenged  the  Scots,  and  she  ever  took  the  part  of  her 
countrymen,  and  wagered  on  them.  "  But  she  and  they  always 
tint''  says  our  chronicler,  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  At  last,  Glueen 
Margaret  betted  against  her  son  two  hundred  crowns,  that  six  of 
these  Englishmen  would  shoot  better  with  the  bow,  than  any 
half-dozen  of  Scotchmen,  were  they  picked  out  of  the  whole  king- 
dom, nobles,  gentles,  or  yeomen.  The  challenge  ran  that  the 
English  were  to  shoot  against  them,  "  at  riveris,  the  butts  or 
prick-bonnet.  The  young  King,  hearing  of  this  bonspiel  ^  of  his 
mother,  was  well  content.  And  Q,ueen  Margaret  laid  down  ane 
hundred  crowns,  and  King  James  laid  down  the  same ;  and  ane 
tun  of  wine  was  to  be  expended  on  either  side." 

The  ground  was  chosen  at  St.  Andrews,  a  town  long  famous 
for  feats  in  archery.  The  Scotch  archers  were  "  three  landed 
gentlemen  and  three  yeomen,  David  Arnott  of  that  ilk,  David 
^  So  written. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  221 

Weams  of  that  ilk,  and  Mr.  John  Wedderbume,  vicar  of  Dundee. 
The  yeomen  were  John  Thomson  of  Leith,  Steven  Tabroner,  and 
Ahck  BailKe,  v/ho  was  ane  piper,  and  shot  wondrous  near."  The 
Enghshmen  who  figured  as  their  rivals,  it  may  be  supposed,  were 
not  worthy  to  be  named  by  the  Lindsay,  for  they  were  defeated 
at  their  far-famed  national  weapon  ;  and  Q,ueen  Margaret  lost 
her  wager,  to  the  intense  delight  of  every  Scotchman  present. 
She  accompanied  her  son  to  the  town  of  St.  AndreAvs,  where  they 
were  followed  by  all  engaged  in  the  archery-contest,  the  young 
King  having  determined  to  expend  the  whole  of  the  two  hundred 
crowns  in  a  grand  feast,  at  which  the  archers  were  to  preside, 
both  winners  and  losers.  It  was  sufficiently  rich  to  console  the 
English  for  their  defeat. 

Lord  William  Howard's  real  errand  was  to  persuade  the  King 
of  Scotland  to  receive  the  hand  of  the  Princess  Mary  Tudor.  The 
(dueen  of  Scotland  knew  well  that  the  Emperor  could  not  induce 
her  brother  to  keep  Katharine  of  Aragon  in  her  place  as  Q,ueen, 
or  the  English  heiress  as  Princess.  And  when  they  were  de- 
graded, what  would  her  son  James  gain  by  wedding  the  illegiti- 
mated daughter,  but  the  plea  for  raising  a  civil  war  with  Eng- 
land, in  maintenance  of  his  Glueen's  rights  of  succession  ?  Marga- 
ret had  stigmatized  her  own  daughter  with  illegitimacy,  and  let 
her  go  forth  a  homeless  wanderer  on  the  face  of  the  earth.  She, 
a  woman,  had  not  felt  feminine  tenderness  sufficient  to  plead 
against  blemishing  the  good  name  and  position  in  life  of  her 
own  Margaret :  how  then  could  she  expect  her  brother  would 
refrain  from  visiting  his  Mary  with  a  similar  fate  ? 

Q,ueen  Margaret  knew  her  brother,  if  she  did  not  know  herself. 
She  had  preceded  him  by  several  years  in  the  race  of  that  worst 
species  of  profligacy,  which  scofis  at  the  sanctity  of  the  marriage 
tie,  and  the  happiness  of  the  children  deriving  existence  from  such 
union  ;  she  therefore  treated  the  disposal  of  the  hand  of  her  niece 
Mary  to  her  son,  nearly  as  contemptuously  as  any  of  the  Princes 
of  Europe  would  have  considered  a  marriage  with  her  own  out- 
cast daughter,  Margaret  Douglas. 

Margaret  came  on  the  first  of  June,  1532,  to  hold  a  forest  court 
for  her  dower-lands  at  Ettrick.^  She  demanded  the  keys  of  the 
fortress  of  Newark  "■'  from  the  castellan  Buccleuch,  who  refused 
them  until  he  knew  King  James's  pleasure  on  that  matter.  Q^ueen 

*  State  Papers,  vol.  v.,  June,  1532.  ^  Ibid.    Newark  near  Ettrick. 


222  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Margaret  sent  a  sliarp  complaint  to  her  son,  who  forthwith  com- 
manded Buccleuch  to  deliver  the  keys  to  her  Grace.  Directly  it 
was  done  she  gave  them  to  Methven.  Her  train  amounted  to 
sixty  cavaliers  and  twenty-four  foot-runners.  She  stayed  at  the 
Abbey  of  Dryburgh  ;  from  thence  she  passed  to  Coldstream,  and 
finished  her  summer  progress  at  Holyrood.  She  had  never  re- 
ceiA'-ed  satisfactory  possession  of  her  rich  Ettrick  dower-lands  at 
any  previous  time.  Methven  left  his  brother  James  with  two 
hundred  troopers,  to  guard  the  rights  of  his  royal  spouse  in  Et- 
trick ;  and  for  some  few  years  Margaret  found  herself  lady  of  her 
OM^n  lands. 

Years  had  rolled  on  since  Margaret  had  been  favored  with  the 
slightest  confidential  communication  from  her  brother  Henry  VHI. 
He  had  as  deeply  resented  her  divorce  from  the  Earl  of  Angus, 
and  her  marriage  with  Lord  Methven,  as  if  he  had  set  her  the 
purest  pattern  of  conjugal  constancy.  The  political  agitation  in 
which  his  own  repudiation  of  Katharine  of  Aragon  had  involved 
his  own  kingdom,  he  knew,  had  given  unwonted  strength  to  the 
government  of  Scotland,  which  became  the  rallying  point  for  all 
discontented  with  the  divorce  of  dueen  Katharine  and  the  disin- 
heriting of  Mary.  If  this  state  of  afiairs  continued,  Henry  con- 
sidered that  very  serious  interruptions  might  occur  to  his  wedded 
felicity  with  his  new  Q,ueen.  Meantime  Margaret's  old  friend 
and  confessor.  Dr.  Magnus,  earnestly  pressed  on  his  attention  the 
policy  of  renewing  his  correspondence  with  Q,ueen  Margaret. 

The  reconciliation  between  Henry  VHI.  and  his  sister  Marga- 
ret was  wholly  ratified  by  Lord  William  Howard  (uncle  to  Anne 
Boleyn),  who  was  appointed  ambassador  to  Scotland  in  the  autumn 
of  1534.  His  instructions  bear  an  especial  clause,  directing  him 
to  gain  the  good  graces  of  his  King's  "  dearest  suster,  the  Q,ueen- 
mother  of  Scotland."  ^ 

The  only  portion  of  Q,ueen  Margaret's  long  letter  of  reconcilia- 
tion bearing  directly  on  the  previous  coolness  between  herself  and 
Henry  VHL  occurs  in  these  words  : — 

"  Please  your  Grace,2  howbeit  in  time  bypast  some  misadvised  persona 
have  made  mikindly  report  of  Ws  unto  you,  witliout  cause  of  offense  in  us, 
we  have  and  always  sal  indured  and  continued  your  most  loving  cystyr,  in- 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  2. 

2  Margaret  to  Henry  VHI,  Dec.  12,  1534.    State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  10. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  223 

tending  no  less  all  time  of  oui-  life,  having  sic  confidence  in  you  that  ye  will 
hold  us  the  same.  Your  Grace  is  our  only  brother,  and  Owz  your  only 
sister ;  and  since  so  is,  let  no  divorce  or  contraire  have  place,  nor  no  report 
of  ill  adviset  alter  our  conceits,  but  brotherly  and  cysterly  love  ever  to  en- 
dure, to  the  pleasure  of  God  and  vreal  of  us  both.  And  trust  no  less  in  me 
than  in  yourself  in  all  and  sindrie  things  at  our  whole  power,  as  pleaseth 
your  Grace  to  command.  Beseeching  the  eternal  God  to  consarve  you  in 
es'erlasting  grace. 

"  Written  with  our  awn  hand  at  Edinburgh,  the  12  day  of  December  in- 
stant, by  your  Grace  awn  and  only 

"  Most  lovyng  and  hummyll  Cystyr, 

"Majrgaret  R." 

Glueen  Margaret  addressed  a  longer  and  more  familiar  epistle 
to  the  all-powerful  minister  Cromwell,  dated  on  the  same  day. 
She  narrates  more  of  actual  occurrences  than  usual  hi  her  wordy- 
epistles.  The  ostensible  purport  of  the  whole  was  to  convey  her 
loving  greetings  to  her  new  sister  the  Q,ueen  of  Henry  VIII.,  and 
commend  herself  to  her  regard.  Communications  between  Mar- 
garet, Q,ueen  of  Scotland,  and  Anne  Boleyn  are  rarities  in  history. 

dueen  Margaret  addressed  Cromwell  by  the  title  of  "  My  Lord 
Sacriter,"  meaning  secretary,  "  and  her  dearly  beloved  friend," 
informing  him  that  she  had, 

*'  By  our  dearest  brother's  the  King's  servitors.  Master  William  Barlow 
Prior  and  Thomas  Holcroft,  received  the  King  our  dearest  brother's  most 
loving  letters,  with  sundry  other  honorable  tokens  of  remembrance,  and  also 
ane  goodly  letter,  with  ane  loving  token  from  our  dearest  cister  the  Queen 
(Anne  Boleyn),  which  not  only  shall  be  to  our  honor,  but  in  like  manner 
unto  his  Grace  and  our  dearest  cistir,  exhorting  you  most  affectuously  that 
ye  will  in  our  name  thank  his  grace  most  heartily."  ^ 

Margaret  probably  means  that  it  will  be  an  honor  to  Anne 
Boleyn  to  make  peace  and  heal  differences  between  the  royal 
families  of  Scotland  and  England.  She  informs  her  brother's 
secretary  that  she  had  sununoned  her  son  to  receive  the  envoys  ; 
and  although  King  James  had  been  but  a  very  short  time  con- 
valescent of  the  infirmity  of  small-pox  and  fever,  yet  he  had 
traveled  at  the  rate  of  twenty  miles  each  day  for  eight  days ; 
and  at  the  last  stage  of  twenty  miles,  being  unable  to  proceed, 
had  written  to  her,  his  mother,  requesting  her  to  send  her  spouse 
Lord  Methven  to  convey  the  English  envoys  to  him  for  audience. 

1  Margaret  to  Henry  VIII,  Dec.  12,  1534.    State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  12. 


224  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

Margaret  declares  that  she  had  resolved  to  assist  at  this  important 
congress,  and  great  merit  she  takes  :  "  That  on  the  next  morrow, 
being  the  most  troublous  weather  that  we  ever  traveled  into,  we 
com,  to  our  dearest  son,  with  whom  we  communed  and  resolved, 
so  that  by  the  advice  of  us,  and  of  no  other  living  person,  deter- 
mined and  concluded  the  meeting."  The  meeting  thus  anxiously- 
arranged  and  superintended  by  dueen  Margaret,  was  to  induce 
her  son's  acknowledgment  of  her  brother's  tardily  announced 
wedlock  with  Anne  Boleyn.  The  influence  of  the  Q,ueen-mother 
had  evidently  been  bought  with  high  bribes,  and  she  now  looked 
forward  to  the  pleasing  prospect  of  reaping  golden  harvests  on 
every  possible  pretense  whereon  she  could  hang  a  supplication  for 
cash.  She  proceeds  to  declare  the  opposition  felt  to  Henry's 
marriage  with  Anne  Boleyn  by  the  Chancellor  Beton  and  the  rest 
of  the  spirituality  of  Scotland. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  tumultuous  passions  of  young 
James  of  Scotland  only  too  eagerly  seconded  the  recognition  his 
uncle  demanded  of  the  divorce  of  Katharine  of  Aragon  and  the 
marriage  of  Anne  Boleyn,  lor  James  himself  was  madly  in  love 
with  the  lady  of  Lochleven,  well  known  in  Scottish  history  as  the 
mother  of  James,  afterward  Regent  of  Scotland.  She  was  a 
married  woman,  but  he  came  to  the  determination  of  having  her 
divorced,  and  following  the  example  of  his  uncle  of  England. 
His  mother,  whether  she  knew  the  scheme  that  had  darted  into 
his  brain  or  not,  impetuously  carried  forward  her  brother's  plans. 
Her  letter  to  Cromwell  described  how  the  Catholic  clergy  in 
Scotland  submitted  "  in  silence  to  the  recognition  of  Anne  Boleyn' s 
marriage,  save  that  they  set  a  black  friar  to  preach  before  her  son 
in  a  sermon  made  expressly  to  condemn  it  covertly."  "  Which 
friar,"  proceeds  Gtueen  Margaret,^  "  we  shall  not  stand  content 
with,  because  his  report  in  some  part  concerned  our  dearest 
brother  and  his  realm,  howbeit  the  same  was  colored  and  not  ex- 
pressly specifying  his  Grace  nor  his  subjects.  We  shall  remem- 
ber him  (the  friar)  as  cause  requireth,  but  assuredly  the  King,  our 
dearest  son,  took  no  manner  tent  (heed)  thereto."  Margaret 
concludes  her  letter  to  Cromwell  with  some  exercise  of  generosity 
in  the  way  of  a  present,  to  which,  notwithstanding  her  alledged 
profusion,  she  was  little  addicted  ;  her  previous  presents,  men- 
tioned in  her  numerous  letters,  cost  her  nothing,  being  the  famous 
^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  12. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  225 

falcons,  natives  of  the  Scottish  isles,  called  by  her  "  hawks." 
Her  gift  to  Cromwell  was  some  kind  of  jewel.  "  And  in  remem- 
berance  ye  will  receive  ane  little  token,  and  wear  the  same  for 
our  pleasure,  as  she  that  standeth  to  you  your  friend,  at  our 
power,  and  thinks  her  no  less  indebted  hearing  of  your  faithful 
and  obedient  service  done  to  the  pleasure,  honor,  and  wealth  of 
our  dearest  brother  the  King,  and  also  your  good  mind  to  us,  his 
Grace's  only  sister."  ^ 

The  uncle  of  Anne  Boleyn,  Lord  William  Howard,  soon  after 
returned  to  Scotland,  bearing  the  Order  of  the  Garter,^  with 
which  it  was  the  pleasure  of  Henry  VHI.  to  invest  James  V. 
The  investment  is  acknowledged  by  the  Bishop  of  Aberdeen  as 
taking  place  on  March  4,  1534-5.  Margaret  soon  after  renewed 
her  old  petitions  for  cash,  and  by  Lord  William  Howard  sent  a 
pressing  intimation  "that  her  good  services  deserved  a  pecuniary 
reward,  which  could  be  delicately  tendered  by  her  brother  by  way 
of  indemnifying  her  for  her  losses  on  her  dower-lands  on  the 
Marches."  In  order  to  deserve  her  fees,  she  had  contrived  to 
elicit  from  her  son  intelligence  of  the  secret  orders  he  had  given 
to  his  ambassador,  Sir  Adam  Otterbourne,  then  resident  at 
Hampton  Court.  How  he  was  not  to  agree  to  his  uncle's  "new 
constitution  of  religion,"  and  that  he  meant  to  change  the  place 
of  meeting  to  Newcastle  instead  of  York.  Margaret  wrote  down 
instantly  a  minute  of  all  her  son  had  told  her  in  confidence,  and 
sent  the  particulars  to  her  brother.  A  baser  breach  of  trust  she 
never  made.  She  added,  that  Sir  Adam  was  directed  '"not  to 
press  for  answer  in  writing,  but  merely  to  report  cleverly  what 
was  remarked."  All  these  intimations  Margaret  thought  of 
sufficient  moment  to  be  forwarded  by  post  to  Berwick,  whence 
they  were  to  be  speeded  onward.  Margaret  professed  "  that  her 
son  loved  Henry  as  his  natural  father,"  the  more  doubtless  for  the 
failure  of  Anne  Boleyn's  male  heirs.  Before  the  Glueen-mother 
closed  her  letter,  she  pumped  other  articles  of  Otterbourne's  in- 
structions out  of  her  son  ;  and  she  adds,  "  I  spake  with  the  King 
my  son  ere  I  directed  this  letter.  Please  your  Grace  to  have  it 
close  and  secretly  kept.  By  my  evil  hand  in  haste.  Off  Edin- 
burgh this   16  day  of  March."  ^     Lord  WiUiam  Howard,  who 

1  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  13.  '  Ibid.  p.  20. 

«  Ibid.  p.  80. 

K* 


226  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

was  again  at  Edinburgh  in  March  1535-6,  informs  his  master* 
"  that  (oliieen  Margaret,  and  many  others  beside,  had  told  him 
that  James  meant  to  marry  a  gentlewoman  of  Scotland,  the  lord 
of  Erskine's  daughter,  by  whom  he  was  already  the  father  of  a 
son.'"  Lord  WilUam  then  proceeds  to  give  the  erroneous  tale 
that  the  King  of  Scots  "hath  found  the  means  to  divorce  her 
from  her  husband,  and  there  is  great  lamentation  made  in  Scot- 
land as  far  as  men  dare.  No  man  was  privy  to  that  matter  but 
Sir  James  Hamilton."  Again  that  evil  person  crosses  the  private 
history  of  the  royal  family  of  Scotland.  Q,ueen  Margaret's  own 
good  name  had  been  compromised  a  dozen  years  previously,  as 
shown  in  Lord  Dacre's  dispatches.  Since  then  he  had  assassinated 
Lennox,  and  now  appears  as  his  young  King's  arch-tempter. 

Margaret  was  in  consternation  at  the  ruin  which  her  example 
and  that  of  her  brother  was  bringing  on  her  son.  James  V.  was 
on  bad  terms  with  her  ;  he  had  discovered  her  treacherous  corre- 
spondence, and  threatened  punishment.  His  rage  broke  out  when 
his  mother  began  to  discuss  his  meeting  with  his  uncle  at  New- 
castle. "  Her  Grace  hath  been  so  very  plain  with  him,"  wrote 
Lord  William,  "  that  he  is  very  angry  with  her.  Your  Highness 
hath  cause  to  give  her  great  thanks.  I  humbly  beseech  your 
Grace  that  Sir  Adam  Otterbourne  (the  Scottish  resident  ambassa- 
dor) do  not  know  that  I  have  sartyjied  your  Grace  that  the 
marriage  with  France  was  broken  off^,  or  he  will  cause  the  King's 
Grace  your  nephew  to  be  angry."  ^ 

The  King  of  Scotland  was  angry,  he  raged  at  his  mother  ;  and 
Lord  William  sent  word  to  his  royal  master  that  "  the  King 
would  not  go  to  York,  which  Glueen  Margaret  and  he  had  per- 
suaded him  to  promise."  James  V.,  in  an  angry  interview  with 
his  mother,  recalled  that  promise.  She  remained  in  consternation. 
What  her  son  knew,  or  what  he  did  not,  she  could  not  ascertain. 
Her  immediate  imprisonment  was  hinted  ;  yet  she  was  suffered 
to  depart  to  Doune,  near  Menteith.  Two  days  after  she  arrived 
there,  she  dated  a  letter  to  her  brother,  assuming  "  that  her  son's 
displeasure  arose  because  he  would  not  meet  his  uncle  at  York, 
when  he  chose  to  appoint  Newcastle,  on  account  of  the  free  sea 
adjacent."  ■* 

^  Lord  William  Howard  to  Henry  VIII.  State  Papers,  April  25,  1536, 
vol.  V.  p.  41. 

^  Afterward  celebrated  in  history  as  the  Regent  Murray. 

«  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  41.  *  Ibid.  p.  48. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  227 

Margaret's  perplexity  continued  even  up  to  May  12,  when  she 
wrote  an  invitation  for  herself,  that  she  might  accompany  her 
dearest  son  to  tvesy  her  dearest  brother  at  the  expected  congress 
in  England — ''wesyy'  it  may  be  guessed,  is  used  by  Margaret  in 
the  sense  affixed  to  the  examinations  of  the  late  French  pass- 
ports, which  many  of  our  readers  will  remember  they  had  to 
send  to  be  vise.  She  owns  in  her  letter  that  she  has  heard  that 
Henry  VIII.  had  such  important  business  in  hand,  "that  she 
could  hardly  expect  him  to  answer  whether  he  would  be  pleased 
for  her  to  icesy  him  or  not  ;  but  both  she  and  Lord  William 
were  especially  anxious  for  his  answer."  No  wonder  they  waited 
long  for  their  answer,  for  Henry's  important  avocations  were  con- 
nected with  the  demolition  of  his  former  idol,  Anne  Boleyn,  being 
no  other  than  trying,  divorcing,  and  beheading  her.  The  am- , 
bassador,  Lord  William  Howard,  who  was  the  uncle  of  the  un- 
fortunate lady,  was  of  course  anxious  to  learn  the  result  of  the 
astounding  tragedy.  He  speaks  more,  however,  of  Q,ueen  Mar- 
garet's disgrace  with  the  King  her  son;  for  his  secretary,  Bar- 
low,^ wrote  the  same  day  to  Henry  VIII.,  saying  that  "  she  was 
then  in  high  displeasure  (disgrace)  with  King  James,  he  bearing 
her  in  hand,  or  accusing  her  of  receiving  gifts  from  her  brother 
to  betray  him,  with  many  other  unkind  suspicious  words ;  by 
reason  of  which  she,  greatly  discomforted,  is  weary  of  Scotland, 
and  fully  determined  to  come  to  England,  so  that  it  be  your 
Grace's  pleasure.  She  hath  signified  her  mind  in  writing  unto 
your  Grace,  and  likewise  required  us  to  solicit  the  same.  Fur- 
thermore, the  King  of  Scotland's  purpose  cf  marriage  with  the 
divorced  jantyliooman  is  by  no  means  to  be  dissuaded,  but, 
against  the  hearts  of  all  his  nobles,  is  like  to  be  brought  to  pass 
(the  French  marriage  taking  none  effect),  whereof  no  small  dis- 
turbance is  like  to  rise  within  the  realm."  Reports  of  Anne 
Boleyn's  imprisonment  were  spread  in  the  Scottish  court  before 
May  13  (the  date  of  his  letter)  came  to  a  close.  Lord  Wilham 
wrote  to  Cromwell  concerning  the  astonishment  it  caused  to  the 
Glueen  and  the  Scottish  court,  and  begged  to  have  certain  infor- 
mation, as  he  was  asked  every  hour  about  the  Glueen  of  Eng- 
land's imprisonment,  and  could  give  no  "  resolute  ansiver,  being 
ignorant."^ 

1  Howard  and  Barlow,  May  13.     State  Papers,  vol  v.  p.  47. 
'•'  Ibid.  p.  48. 


228  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

(olueeii  Margaret  was  not  in  the  most  easy  state  of  mind  :  she 
had  been  sternly  answered  by  her  son  on  renewing  her  impor- 
tunities for  his  meeting  his  uncle  Henry  VIII. : — "  If,"  said  James 
v.,  "your  brother  means  by  your  aid  to  betray  me,  I  had  liever 
(rather)  it  were  done  while  I  am  in  mine  own  realm  than  in 
England  I"  ^ 

Every  one  who  has  observed  the  proceedings  of  Margaret 
Tudor  will  be  rather  surprised  that  her  son  had  not  addressed  his 
remonstrance  to  her  a  few  years  earlier  than  the  date  of  Lord 
William  Howard's  letter.  As  it  was,  James,  whose  mind  was 
in  a  tumult  of  passion,  struggling  with  the  temptation  of  his  un- 
worthy love,  and  the  honest  wish  to  do  his  duty  to  his  people, 
was  unwontedly  severe  to  his  mother ;  not  that  his  severity  by 
any  means  came  up  to  her  deserts,  but  she  had  never  before  been 
blamed  by  him.  King  James,  in  fact,  was  guilty  of  no  severity 
to  his  mother,  except  a  few  well-deserved  reproofs.  He  took 
measures,  however,  for  the  time  to  come,  in  his  Council,  that 
she  had  no  power  but  what  she  obtained  surreptitiously.  His 
vigorous  mind  ultimately  righted  itself;  the  awful  tragedy  of  his 
uncle's  lawless  love  for  Anne  Boleyn  was  not  lost  upon  him  ;  he 
broke  his  bonds  "  with  the  diYovced.  jmttyl wo jnan'''^  (as  Lord 
William  Howard  calls  the  mother  of  the  Regent  Murray)  ;  he 
determined  to  marry  respectably  ;  but,  in  hopes  of  matrimonial 
felicity,  he  resolved  to  see  and  converse  with  his  wife  before  he 
wedded. 

At  the  departure  of  Lord  William  Howard  from  Edinburgh, 
U,ueen  Margaret  was  still  there,  in  the  Palace  of  Holyrood,  but 
in  disgrace  with  her  son,  who  retired  in  wrath  to  Linlithgow. 
Henry  VIII.,  doubly  engaged  in  the  destruction  of  his  queen, 
and  the  wooing  of  her  successor,  had  no  time  to  write  to  his 
sister.  Very  piteously  did  Barlow,  the  secretary  of  the  English 
ambassador,  represent  the  case  of  Gtueen  Margaret  in  these 
words,  addressed  to  Cromwell,  May  25:^ — "Her  Grace  Q/Ueen 
Margaret  hopes  to  receive  some  comfortable  answer  from  the 
King,  her  brother,  in  relief  of  her  sorrow,  which  is  not  a  little 
now,  and  like  to  be  much  more  grievous."  She  wrote  an  urgent 
letter  to  her  brother  the   day  of  Lord  William  Howard's  de- 

1  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  48. 

*  Howard's  Letter,  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  48. 

^  State  Papers.     Ibid.  p.  52. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  229 

parture,  commending  him  and  all  his  proceedings  to  Henry  VIII.  ; 
but  the  star  of  Howard  had  met  with  its  first  obscuration  in  the 
disgrace  of  Q,ueen  Anne  Boleyn.^ 

The  projected  alliance  between  the  brother  of  Lord  William 
and  Lady  Margaret  Douglas,  there  can  be  little  doubt,  was  com- 
municated by  him  to  the  dueen-mother  of  Scotland  during  his 
embassies  in  1536;  which  made  her  recognize  in  the  premier 
ducal  family  of  England  a  future  family  connection.  Henry 
VIII.  sent  neither  answer  nor  consolation  to  his  sister,  who  re- 
mained in  deserved  disgrace  with  her  son,  not  daring  to  renew 
her  usual  communication  of  his  proceedings. 

Some  sudden  urgency  of  pecuniary  difficulty  prompted  her  to 
demand  the  cash  she  considered  that  she  had  earned  in  the  affair 
of  Anne  Boleyn's  recognition  ;  for  on  July  16  she  made  a  bold 
requisition  from  her  brother  of  20,000  merks,  "to  help  her  out 
of  perpetual  pain,  as  she  had  done  all  she  could  to  further  the 
visit  of  her  son  to  England,  but  he  could  not  be  induced  to 
come."^  As  her  letter  gave  not  the  slightest  hint  of  her  son's 
voyage  to  France,  which  took  place  a  few  days  afterward,^  July 
24,  Henry  VIII.  and  his  cunning  prime-minister,  Cromwell,  sup- 
posed Margaret  had  either  lost  the  will  or  the  power  to  be  their 
spy  effectually.  They  bestowed  no  cash,  but  expressed  mighty 
astonishment  wherefore  she  could  want  such  heavy  sums  "  Avhen 
her  state  was  so  prosperous  under  the  protection  of  her  son  and 
Lord  Muffin."  In  fact,  it  w^as  utterly  out  of  Margaret's  power 
to  send  any  intelligence  regarding  the  King,  otherwise  than  might 
be  gathered  from  any  Scottish  peasant  crossing  the  Border  ;  for 
her  son  kept  his  voyage  in  search  of  a  wife  a  profound  secret 
from  the  world  in  general,*  and  from  his  mother  in  particular. 
Margaret  was  left  without  power  in  the  government,  and  was 
fain  to  reside  on  her  demesnes  in  the  west  of  Scotland. 

Being  thus  under  a  cloud,  and  in  disgrace  with  her  royal  son, 
she  gave  a  portion  of  remembrance  to  that  other  child  from 
whom  her  divorce  from  the  father  had  estranged  her.  While 
residing  at  Perth,  Q,ueen  Margaret  heard  of  the  severity  with 
which  her  daughter  had  been  treated  by  Henry  VIII. ;  and  that 
not  only  her  unfortunate  lover.  Lord  Thomas  Howard,  but  even 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  53.  ^  Ibid.  p.  59. 

3  See  Life  of  Magdalene,  Queen  of  James  V. 
*  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  59. 


230  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

the  young  lady  herself  was  then  suffering  harsh  imprisonment  in 
the  Tower  lor  their  steadfast  adherence  to  their  betrothment  with 
each  other.  Exasperated  by  the  whole  proceedings  of  her  brother 
and  his  ministers,  (dueen  Margaret  wrote,  August  12,  1536,  in 
earnest  remonstrance  regarding  the  ill-treatment  of  her  child.  ^ 
She  wrote  with  more  eloquence  and  spirit  than  usual,  reproach- 
ing her  brother  with  first  encouraging  her  daughter  in  plighting 
her  faith  to  Lord  Thomas  Howard,  and  then  punishing  them  both 
with  rigorous  imprisonment.  Margaret,  in  the  course  of  her  let- 
ter, demands  with  a  high  hand,  that  her  daughter  may  be  sent 
forthwith  to  her  in  Scotland — if  done,  "  she  will  answer  that  her 
child  will  never  trouble  her  brother  more."  There  is  a  little  re- 
lief from  the  selfishness  of  Margaret's  usual  conduct,  to  find  the 
maternal  feelings  thus  ardently  breaking  forth  through  the  crust 
of  diplomacy,  (dueen  Margaret,  as  she  afterward  affirmed, 
was  struck  v/ith  such  displeasure  and  indignation  at  her  daugh- 
ter's incarceration  in  the  Tower,  that  it  put  a  stop  to  her  intended 
journey  into  England,  where  she  meant  to  have  given  her  brother 
the  honor  and  advantage  of  her  society,  for  the  purpose  of  being 
re-married  to  her  former  spouse,  Archibald,  Earl  of  Angus,  then 
at  his  court. ^  Although  she  speaks  angrily  in  another  epistle, 
"that  any  person  could  believe  such  a  thing  of  her,"  yet,  in  a 
third  dispatch,  she  mentions  it  with  complacency.  Shakspeare 
might  well  have  apostrophized  her  in  the  words — 

"  False,  fickle,  changing  woman  I" 

as  he  did  her  grandmother,  whose  conduct  was  more  excusable. 
Her  maternal  remonstrance  was  but  a  spark  of  high  spirit  just 
struck  out  by  circumstances,  and  extinct  forever.  She  soon  re- 
curred to  her  usual  mean  mendacity,  while  Henry  VIII.,  in  course 
of  years,  received  the  perpetual  complaints  of  his  sister  much  in 
the  same  spirit  that  pedestrians,  on  their  beat  daily,  view  the 
petitions  of  perennial  beggars  hourly  asking  relief  on  the  same 
distress.     Margaret    perpetually  urges    her  brother  for  money; 

'  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  50. 

'  Lord  Herbert  of  Cherbury.  Life  of  Henry  VIII.  Perfect  History, 
vol.  ii.  p.  20L  Lord  Herbert  is  very  correct  in  his  history, liaving  submitted 
to  the  guidance  of  the  State  Papers.  He  has  evidently  seen  a  few  letters 
which  have  escaped  modern  editors.  This  might  well  be,  as  he  wrote  more 
than  two  centuries  earlier. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  231 

perpetually  giving  as  reasons  the  ill-treatment  of  her  son,  or  of 
one  or  other  of  her  husbands.  At  this  period  of  her  life,  she  varied 
her  complaints  by  telhng  tales  of  her  son,  and  finishing  up  the 
picture  of  her  wrongs  with  some  dark  touches  concerning  her  third 
husband,  Harry,  Lord  Methven. 

Her  supplication  was  answered  by  her  brother,  in  civil  terms 
it  is  true  ;  yet  a  vein  of  quiet  sarcasm  runs  through  the  compo- 
sition. 

"  Dearest  sister,^  you  shall  understand,  that  hke-as  we  would  be  right  sorry 
to  see  that  our  good  brother  and  nephew  (James  V.)  should  not  use  you  in 
all  things  as  beseemeth  a  natural  and  kind  son  to  use  his  mother,  so  you  may 
certainly  persuade  yourself,  that  in  case  we  should  certainly  perceive  that 
you  were  treated  otherwise  than  your  honor  and  the  treaty  of  your  marriage 
doth  require,  there  shall,  on  our  behalf,  want  no  loving  and  kind  office  which 
we  think  may  tend  to  your  relief." 

In  thus  mentioning  her  marriage,  her  brother  does  not  trouble 
himself  Avith  the  two  husbands  she  married  while  Glueen  Dowa- 
ger, but  merely  with  the  marriage  treaty  which  gave  the  Princess 
Royal  of  England  the  crown-matrimonial  of  Scotland. 

"  But,  dearest  sister,"  continues  Henry  VIII.,  "  by  the  report  of  Sir  John 
Campbell,  whom  you  recommended  as  your  special  friend,  it  appeared  to  U3 
that  you  be  very  well  handled  (treated),  and  be  grown  to  much  icealth  (weal), 
quiet,  and  riches ;  and,  on  the  other  side,  by  your  account  given  our  servant, 
Berwick,  it  appeareth  otherwise.  These  tales  be  so  contrary  one  to  another, 
that  we  may  well  remain  doubtful  which  of  them  we  may  beheve.  Perceiv- 
ing also,  by  other  information  received  from  you,  concerning  your  trouble 
and  evil  handling,  both  by  our  nephew,  your  son,  and  by  the  '  Lord  Muffyn,' 
that  either  your  state  varies,  or  else  things  have  not  been  well  understood." 

Henry  VIII.,  however,  ordered  Cromwell  to  call  Lord  Methven 
to  account  for  his  misdoings ;  but  that  noble  only  answered  by 
asking  Cromwell  to  assure  the  King  of  England  "that  his  own 
sim2)lcness  was  always  ready  to  serve  him  in  all  humility  before 
all  princes  m  the  world,  excepting  his  own  sovereign  lord."  His 
letter  was  dated  December  11,  at  Edinburgh.''  Poor  Lord  Meth- 
ven !  His  few  lines  were  evidently  penned  in  great  astonishment 
as  to  how  he  had  drawn  on  himself  the  wrath  of  the  terrible 
brother  of  his  queenly  spouse. 

^  Hew-y  VIII.  to  Margaret  (Queen-mother  of  Scotland),  edited  by  J.  0. 
Halliwell,  in  letters  of  the  Kings  of  England,  vol.  i.  p.  275. 
*  Btate  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  62.     December,  1536. 


232  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

All  the  advantage  possible  to  be  made  of  the  Glueen's  com- 
plaints of  ill-treatment  by  her  son  and  Lord  Methven  was  taken 
by  Henry  VIII.  He  hated  Methven,  because  he  had  reason  to 
know  that  he  was  a  most  faithful  servant  to  James  V.  But  he 
allected  to  lend  a  pitying  ear  to  his  sister's  woful  representations, 
and  took  the  opportunity  of  sending  Ralph  Sadler  to  spy  in  Scot- 
land during  the  absence  of  the  King,  under  pretense  of  the  neces- 
sity of  secret  conference  on  some  delicate  distress  of  his  dearest 
sister,  Q,ueen  Margaret.  Sadler  went  to  Scotland,  and  returned 
laden  with  packets  of  the  Glueen's  letters  and  verbal  messages 
concerning  a  new  divorce,  as  she  had  come  to  the  resolution  of 
dismissing  Lord  Methven.  She  looked  long  and  vainly  for  an- 
swers. At  last  Harry  Ray  (the  pursuivant  called  Berwick)  came 
ostensibly  to  inquire  about  some  friars  who  had  escaped  across 
the  Borders,  but  in  reality  he  was  to  have  secret  communication 
with  (olueen  Margaret,  and  hear  from  her  lips  the  condition  of 
Scotland,  and  whether  any  mischief  could  be  done  in  its  young 
King's  absence. 

Such  was  the  gist  of  Harry  Ray's  mission,  which  Margaret 
deemed  was  to  expedite  her  second  divorce  and  fourth  marriage 
with  "one  John  Stuart."^  For  so  both  history  and  tradition 
name  the  cause  of  her  meditated  change  of  spouses.  It  must  be 
owned  the  Glueen  was  constant  to  the  Stuart  family.  Her  hand 
had  already  been  given  to  King  James  Stuart — she  had  divorced 
her  second  spouse,  with  the  hopes  of  marrying  the  Regent,  John 
Stuart,  Duke  of  Albany — she  had  actually  wedded  Harry  Stuart, 
and  she  now  intended  to  marry  some  commoner  called  John  Stuart, 
if  she  could  succeed  in  ridding  herself  of  the  spouse  with  whom 
she  had  passed  the  last  twelve  years.  A  tradition  exists  among 
some  of  the  noblest  families  in  Scotland,  that  Margaret's  fourth 
intended  husband  was  no  other  than  that  strange  character,  John 
Stuart  Earl  of  Arran,  who,  after  effecting  a  revolution  in  the 
minority  of  James  VI.,  vanishes  suddenly  from  the  historical  scene 
in  1584.  As  Margaret  was  partial  to  very  young  men,  Arran 
might  have  been  her  intended  spouse  in  1536,  and  yet  not  have 
seen  sixty  at  the  period  of  his  death.  He  was  one  of  the  Scotch 
colony  of  Darnley-Stuarts  bred  in  France,  whose  general  code  of 
morals  did  no  great  credit  to  their  adopted  country. 

The  interview  between  Glueen  Margaret  and  her  brother's  agent 

*  Scott's  "  Hi-story  of  the  Gowries."     Sir  James  Mackintosh's  England. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  233 

was  conducted  with  the  utmost  caution.  Harry  Ray  was  re- 
quested to  change  his  gay  gaberdine  for  a  hat  and  cloak  after  the 
fashion  of  Scotland,  and  to  follow  a  friend  of  his,  pertaining  to 
Q,ueen  Margaret's  service,  into  the  private  apartments  of  royalty 
at  Holyrood.  At  nine  at  night  it  was  announced  to  him  that 
Q,ueen  Margaret  would  give  him  secret  audience.  "  And  there," 
he  says,  "  I  met  her  alone  in  a  gallery,  no  person  knowing  of  the 
interview  but  only  her  said  servant."  The  (olueen  at  first  said, 
"  You  are  welcome  ;  but  I  marvel  that  I  hear  no  word  of  the 
letters  I  sent  by  Raufe  Sadler.  I  trow  my  friends  forget  me  I  I 
pray  you  speak  to  my  lord  of  Norfolk  (the  Duke),  that  he  be  so 
good  cousin  and  friend  as  to  remember  the  King,  my  brother,  to 
be  a  kind  and  loving  brother  unto  me,  and  to  see  some  way  for 
me,  as  I  shall  be  a  kind  and  loving  sister  to  him,  and  at  his  com- 
mandment in  all  cases." 

Harry  Ray,  who  was  not  the  most  diplomatic  of  all  spies,  re- 
plied, "  I  shall  not  fail  to  do  the  same  ;"  and  then  bluntly  added, 
"that  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  desired  her  to  show  him  some  news." 
Small  hopes  there  were  of  any  good  to  be  gained  by  hshing  in 
troubled  waters  at  that  time.  Margaret's  answer  showed  that 
the  Scottish  people  were  unanimously  obedient  to  the  vigorous 
intellect  of  their  young  monarch,  absent  though  he  was.^ 

"  There  is  not  one  lord  in  Scotland,"  replied  tlueen  Margaret, 
"  that  will  speak  to  the  King,  my  son,  good  counsel  toward  Eng- 
land, unless  it  be  he  take  it  of  himself  All  the  lords  and  council 
here  do  verily  believe  that  your  ships  be  gone  forth  on  the  wes- 
tern seas,  to  the  intent  to  seize  the  King  my  son.  And  now  the 
Lords  of  the  Scottish  Council  have  bitten  in  counsel,  for  what 
purpose  I  know  not ;  but  upon  their  rising  they  sent  away  Rosey  ^ 
herald  into  France,  to  the  King  thereof,  thinking  he  would  arrive 
before  the  departure  of  King  James.  The  hera.d  was  to  oversee 
the  country  of  England  as  he  went  through  it,  and  report  the 
same  to  the  King  my  son." 

The  pursuivant  said  he  should  declare  the  same  to  the  Duke 
of  Norfolk,  and  away  he  went. 

U,ueen  Margaret  had  not  yet  spoken  her  mind  to  the  messen- 
ger, as  those  who  are  acquainted  with  her  furtive  disposition  can 
very  well  guess.  Next  evening,  at  the  very  same  hour,  the  Eng- 
lish pursuivant  had  agam  to  throw  ofT  his  gorgeous  heraldic  tabard, 

i  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  63.  ^  Rothesay  Herald. 


234  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

and  muffle  himself  up  in  Scotch  plaid,  before  he  followed  his 
guide  into  the  (Queen's  private  gallery  in  Holy  rood  Palace. 

"  There  shall  be  nothing  done  in  this  realm,"  said  the  Q,ueen, 
"  but  the  King  my  brother,  and  my  lord  of  Norfolk,  shall  have 
knowledge  of  it.  The  Lords  and  all  the  commonalty  of  Scotland 
do  suspect  that  ye  will  make  war  against  them  ;  and  if  it  be  so, 
let  my  lord  of  Norfolk  make  sure  of  the  Commons." 

Margaret  meant  the  common  people  of  England.  The  desti- 
tute poor  among  them,  in  their  extreme  agony  at  the  deprivation 
of  support  by  the  monasteries,  without  other  aid  being  provided, 
had  lately  risen  in  the  rebellion  called  the  "  Pilgrimage  of  Grace," 
and  were  now  daily  sending  invitations  to  the  King  of  Scotland 
for  assistance.  The  Berwick  pursuivant  rejoined,  "  Hath  your 
Grace  any  suspect  that  they  are  not  sure  enough  ?" 

"  Nay,"  answered  Glueen  Margaret ;  "  but  I  pray  you  show 
this  unto  him — and  also,  if  ye  intend  war,  say,  that  I  pray  my 
lord  of  Norfolk  that  he  make  no  war  until  I  and  Harry  Stuart  be 
divorced.  For  if  the  war  should  be  before  the  said  divorce  were 
made,  the  Lords  of  Scotland  will  suffer  him  to  have  my  living." 
There  came  Q,ueen  Margaret  to  her  usual  conclusion  of  self-seek- 
ing :  war  was  to  be  made  to  square  with  her  own  pleasure  and 
inclinations. 

Margaret  received  no  answer  until  the  middle  of  May,  when  a 
dispatch  arrived  from  Cromwell,'  full  of  general  assurances  of 
how  earnestly  "  the  King,  her  brother,  had  travailed  for  her 
contentation  in  the  solicitation  of  her  honorable  causes."  The 
wily  minister  mentions  not  the  divorce,  but  presses  her  for  intelli- 
gence from  Scotland,  and  sends  her  a  present  "  of  cramp-rings," 
as  his  respectable  master  had  lately  consecrated  a  batch  of  those 
useful  and  valuable  articles.  Taking  artful  advantage  of  Marga- 
ret's grumbling  invectives  against  her  son,  Henry  VHL  had  pro- 
vokingly  sent  Ralph  Sadler  on  a  mission  to  him  when  the  highly- 
favored  guest  and  son-in-law  of  Francis  I.  The  errand  of  Sadler 
was  to  remonstrate  with  the  King  of  Scotland  on  the  great 
cruelty  of  treating  his  mother  so  very  ill  that  she  was  forced,  by 
piteous  bewailings,  to  awaken  her  brother's  compassion  in  her 
favor."''  How  infinitely  exasperated  James  V.  must  have  been 
may  be  considered,  when  the  ill-treatment  consisted  only  of  his 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  11.    Cromwell  to  Queen  Margaret,  May  14, 1537. 
^  Pinker  ton,  vol.  ii.  p.  351. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  235 

disapprobation  of  his  mother,  then  in  her  forty-eighth  year, 
divorcing  her  third  husband  to  marry  a  fourth — out  of  these  four 
husbands  three  being  then  aUve  !  According  to  (dueen  Marga- 
ret's plea  concerning  James  IV.,  the  whole  four  might  be  con- 
sidered in  existence  on  the  best  authority  I 

The  aueen,  finding  that  her  son  and  his  fair  French  bride 
were  embarked  for  return  to  Scotland,'  hurried  on  her  divorce 
from  Methven.  She  had  the  whole  process  fairly  transcribed, 
and  it  was  on  the  very  eve  of  promulgation  when  James  V. 
landed.^  When  Q.ueen  Margaret  met  her  son  and  his  bride,  all 
was  joy  and  serenity  for  the  first  few  days ;  which  happy  order 
of  affairs  even  outlasted  her  letter  dated  June  7,  1537,  and 
written  to  Henry  VIII., ^  "thanking  him  for  the  benefaction  of 
£200,"  which  sum  she  had  at  length  extracted  from  him,  that  she 
might  appear  queenly,  for  the  honor  of  England,  in  the  eyes  of 
the  royal  daughter  of  France.  Margaret  likewise  thanks  her 
brother  for  sending  his  "  secret  servant.  Master  Sadler,"  to  her 
son  in  France,  to  complain  how  ill  she  was  treated  in  Scotland ; 
that  she  had  spoken  at  length  to  James  V.,  who  sent  an  ambassa- 
dor, the  Abbot  of  Arbroath,  to  his  uncle  ;  and  very  earnest  is 
Gtueen  Margaret  that,  although  the  Scotch  envoy  was  an  eccle- 
siastic, her  brother  would  not  fall  out  with  him,  "  but  to  take 
kindly  to  the  said  abbot,  lest  he  should  make  evil  report ;  and 
that  he  be  well  entreated,  for  he  is  great  with  the  King  my  son ; 
and  let  him  understand  that  it  is  your  will  and  pleasure  that  I  be 
honorably  entreated  and  obeyed  of  my  living,  seeing  I  am  your 
Grace's  sister  ;  and  this  being  done,  your  Grace  will  be  kinder  to 
the  realm  of  Scotland  for  my  sake.  These  good  words  may  do 
your  Grace  no  hurt,  and  me  much  good  ;  and  with  the  help  of 
God  I  shall  deserve  the  same  at  my  power."  * 

As  for  her  new  divorce,  it  was  progressing  to  admiration. 
"  Pleaseth  your  Grace  to  know,  that  my  divorce  and  iiartition  is 
at  the  giving  of  sentence,  and  proved  by  many  famous  folk,  to 
the  number  of  four-and-twenty  provers.  An'  by  the  grace  of  God, 
I  shall  never  have  such  a  trouble  again,  and  your  Grace  may  be 

^  See  the  ensuing  biography,  Life  of  Magdalene  of  France. 

2  Cott.  MS.  Cahg.  B.  i.  ^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.     June  7,  1537. 

*  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  June  7,  1537.  It  seems  this  envoy  was  the 
famous  David  Beton,  afterward  Cardinal,  who  was  thus  personally 
acquainted  with  Henry  VIII. 


236  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

sure  I  shall  never  do  nothing  but  by  your  Grace's  counsel  and 
commandment ;  for  I  may  do  your  Grace  both  honor  and  pleasure 
better  now  as  I  am.  Beseeching  your  Grace,  if  I  have  need,  that 
I  lack  not  your  help  and  supply,  which  I  trust  I  shall  not  fail  to 
have,  if  I  be  wronged  in  any  thing  I  have  a  right  to."  ^  Unfor- 
tunately for  the  placidity  of  (dueen  Margaret's  temper,  directly 
her  proceedings  reached  the  ears  of  her  son,  his  first  care, 
notwithstanding  "  all  her  famous  folk,  and  four-and-twenty 
provers,"  was  to  quash  the  whole  of  the  fine  scheme. 

Long  and  loud  were  her  invectives  on  his  want  of  filial  duty. 
It  is  strange,  however,  that  throughout  her  correspondence  she 
brings  no  charge  against  Lord  Methven,  excepting  "  that  he  spent 
more  of  her  income  than  she  thought  right."  If  such  cause 
could  be  successfully  pleaded  for  dismissing  a  lord  and  master, 
perhaps  dueen  Margaret's  example  would  be  more  generally 
followed.  Tradition  affirms,  that  Lord  Methven  had  been  privately 
married  to  a  young  widow,  called  the  Mistress  of  Sutherland,  by 
w^hom  he  had  a  family  nearly  the  same  age  as  the  children  he 
had  by  the  Q,ueen  ;  and  that  this  lady's  offspring  were  afterward 
mistaken  for  hers. 

Margaret  was  on  angry  terms  with  her  son  during  the  short 
time  his  Glueen  Magdalene  lived.  Greatly  injured  she  deemed 
herself,  on  account  of  the  restriction  he  put  upon  the  promulga- 
tion of  "  her  sentence."  She  expresses  herself  on  the  subject  of 
her  wrongs,  in  her  epistle  to  "  her  cousin  the  Duke  of  Norfblk," 
telling  him  she  thought  it — 

"  Great  onkindness  that  when  ye  do  send  in  this  realm,  tliat  ye  will  not 
write  or  send  to  speak  with  me,  that  I  may  hear  from  you,  and  you  to  hear 
how  I  am  entreated.  For,  since  the  departure  of  Master  Sadler,  I  have 
gotten  no  word  neither  from  the  King's  Grace  my  brother,  nor  yet  from  you, 
wliich  were  greatly  to  my  comfort  to  hear  from. 

"  And,  dearest  cousin,  1  must  make  my  complaint  to  you,  how  I  am  heavily 
done  to  in  this  realm,  for  I  have  optaynet  (obtained)  my  cause  of  divorce 
betwixt  ME  and  the  Lord  of  Meffen,  and  it  is  so  far  past  tliat  the  judge  has 
concluded  and  written  my  sentence,  ready  to  be  pronounced  this  twelve 
weeks  bypast;  but  the  King  my  son  has  stoppen  the  same,  and  will  not  let 
it  be  given,  contrary  to  justice  and  reason.  And  he  promised,  when  I  gave 
him  my  mains  of  Dunbar  for  a  certain  sum  of  money,  that  I  should  have  the 
sentence  pronounced. 

1  State  Papers,  vol.  v.    June  1,  ISSY. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  237 

"  Thus,  my  Lord,  I  trust  it  be  tlie  King  s  Grace  my  brother's  will,  that  I 
have  reason  done  me  and  obeyed  of  my  living.  Suppose  I  may  not  write 
daily  to  his  Grace,  and  seeing  ye  are  so  near  these  parts  {he  vms  at  Sheriffe 
HuUon\  your  good  writing  and  words  would  do  me  much  good  wiih  the 
King  my  son,  so  that  he  may  understand  that  his  Grace  my  brother  will  not 
suffer  me  to  be  wronged,  for  I  am  daily  holden  in  great  trouble  for  the  lack 
of  my  sentence  ! 

"  Therefore  I  pray  ye,  my  Lord  and  cousin,  that  ye  will  make  some  errand 
hereto  the  King  my  son,  not  saying  I  did  advertise  you;  but  that  everybody 
speaks  of  it  {the  expediency  of  her  divorce),  that  I  should  lack  justice  which 
is  modcr  to  him,  which  is  to  his  dishonor. 

"Tluis,  my  Lord  and  cousin,  ye  may  help  me  out  of  my  trouble  through 
your  good  writing,  for  an'  they  trust  the  King's  Grace  my  brother  will  be  dis- 
pleased at  this,  they  will  remedy  the  same.  As  for  me,  I  am  holden  in  such 
suspicion  for  England's  {sake),  that  I  dare  send  no  Scottish  man. 

"  Therefore  I  desire  you  to  send  some  special  servant  of  yours,  that  I  may 
speak  withal, — praying  you,  my  Lord,  to  do  this  at  m}'^  request,  as  ye  will 
that  I  fare  well ;  and  as  my  special  best  is  in  you,  the  sooner  ye  send  it  is 
the  better  for  me. 

"And  I  pray  you,  my  Lord, that  you  will  give  credence  to  Harry  Ray. 
"  And  God  have  you  in  his  keeping, 

"  Yours,  Margaret  R." 

Endorsed,  without  date  of  time  or  place — "  To  my  Lord  and  cousin,  the 
Duke  of  Norfolk."  i 

In  the  midst  of  the  aiiofiy  controversy  between  the  mother  and 
son  concerning  her  absurd  divorce,  the  hopes  that  Q,ueen  Marga- 
ret had  long  cherished,  that  the  English  succession  would  even- 
tually fall  to  her  line,  seemed  to  be  destroyed  by  the  arrival  of  the 
news  that  her  brother  had  an  heir  born.  The  Q,ueen  dates  her 
letter  October  14,  acknowledging  the  information  of  the  birth  of 
her  nephew  (afterward  Edward  VI.) — a  date  scarcely  credible, 
as  he  was  only  born  October  12.^^ 

"Trusty  and  well  beloved  friend,"  she  wrote  to  Cromwell,^  "  I  commend 
me  heartily  to  you,  and  has  received  your  writing  from  the  King  my 
brother's  servant,  and  the  joyful  tidings  that  ye  have  written  to  me,  that  God 
hath  had  the  grace  to  send  a  Prince  to  the  King's  Grace  my  brothei- ;  the 
■which  I  assure  you,  next  the  welfare  of  the  King's  Grace  my  brother,  it  is 

'   State  Papers,  vol.  v,  p.  103. 

^  The  date  has  been  questioned  as  a  mistake,  but  more  than  one  instance 
occurs  in  history  similar,  as  some  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  dispatches  to 
Fotheringay ;  likewise  the  speed  with  which  the  news  of  that  monarch's 
death  reached  her  successor. 

5  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  120     Dated  Oct.  14,  1&37. 


238  MARGARET     TUDOR, 

the  thing  in  the  world  most  to  my  grace  and  comfort,  praying  God  to  pre- 
serve him  in  health  and  long  life,  as  I  shall  pray  daily  for.  Be  the  King 
my  dearest  brother  in  good  prosperity,  I  trust  I  can  not  be  evil.  But  ye 
shall  understand  I  have  been  and  is  yet  heavily  troubled,  as  any  jantle- 
womaa  may  be  ;  and  I  trust  no  princes  are  in  that  sort  entreated." 

In  another  letter,  dated  October  30,  (iueen  Margaret  again 
mentioned  the  birth  of  her  nephew  Edward,  with  congratu- 
latory expressions,  and  renewed  her  complaints  of  her  son's 
cruelty.  Yet  she  acknowledges  that  she  "  was  comforted  to 
understand  that,  on  the  death  of  Lord  Thomas  Howard,  her 
brother  had  released  her  daughter,  Margaret  Douglas,  from  the 
Tower."' 

A  few  days  afterward,  Glueen  Margaret  wrote  to  Cromwell 
and  to  her  brother.  In  the  latter  epistle  she  gives  the  following 
curious  information, — "  That  though  she  had  provided  her  judge 
with  four-and-forty  yamo2//S  proofs,  as  cause  of  divorce  between 
her  and  Lord  Meffin,"  yet  her  son  had  undutifully  stopped  the 
divorce,  "  and  would  not  let  it  be  pronounced.  For  no  labor  or 
soliciting  by  me,  my  son  will  not  do  it,  for  this  cause,  as  he 
alledges, '  that  I  would  pass  to  England,  and  marry  him  that  was 
Earl  of  Angus  ;'  and  this  Harry  Stuart,  Lord  of  Methven,  causes 
him  to  believe  this  of  me  I'  I  had  liever  be  dead,"  adds  Mar- 
garet, "  for  I  am  holden  in  great  suspicion."  She  is  indignant 
at  having  no  residence  but  a  town  to  dwell  in,  being  then  abiding 
at  Dundee. 

James  V.  had  at  this  time  set  his  mind  on  obtaining  a  young 
lion,  there  being  one  in  Flanders,  which  his  gentleman,  Thomas 
Scott  of  Pitgarno,  had  been  sent  to  cheapen  ;  but  the  agents  of 
Henry  VIII.  bought  it  out  of  his  hands.  Scott  very  naively  says, 
"  My  maister  is  a  young  Prince  delighting  in  sic  things  for  his 
pleasure  ;  and  he  had  assured  him  that,  if  his  uncle  knew  how 
he  delighted  in  sic  pleasures  (young  lions),  which  are  not  gettable 
here,  in  my  own  simpleness  I  deemed  that  the  King  of  England 
would  have  suddenly  propined  his  purchase  to  him,  his  dear 
nephew."  ^ 

dueen  Margaret  wrote  formally  to  her  brother,  December, 
1537,  by  Sir  Thomas  Erskine  and  the  Abbot   of  Kinloss,  to  an- 

1  Lord  Herbert  of  Cherbury.     Perfect  Hist.  vol.  ii.  p.  212. 
^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  119.     Dundee,  Oct.  16. 
'  Ibid.  p.  126.     Dec.  1,  1537. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  239 

nounce  the  approaching  wedlock  of  her  son  and  Mary  of  Lor- 
raine, Duchess  of  Longueville.'  In  a  gossiping  interview  with 
Lord  Wharton  in  the  preceding  October,  she  had  sent  to  her 
brother  some  particulars  she  had  gleaned  from  her  son  concerning 
the  new  bride's  complexion,  stature,  and  jointure,  which  will  be 
best  related  in  the  life  of  that  Glueen. 

dueen  Margaret  never  lost  the  slightest  opportunity  of  begging 
from  her  brother,  whether  in  rebellions  or  rejoicings,  marriages 
or  mournings,  festivities  or  funerals  ;  it  was  always  requisite  to 
his  honor  that  some  cash  should  be  forthcoming.  Her  son's 
marriage  with  the  fair  widow  of  Longueville  gave  occasion  for 
one  of  her  most  importunate  requisitions,  not  only  for  money, 
but  for  presents  of  plate. 

"  Dearest  Brother,^ — Pleaseth  your  Grace  to  consider  noTV  the  coming 
into  this  realm  of  the  lady,  spouse  to  your  nephew  our  dearest  son ;  and 
with  her  comes  sundry  strangers,  for  the  which,  an'  it  pleaseth  your  Grace, 
we  think  to  address  us  at  this  time,  according  so  far  as  we  may,  to  the  honor 
of  your  Grace  and  our  noble  progenitors. 

"  Wherefore,  an'  please  your  Grace  to  be  good  brother  to  us,  as  to  support 
part  with  money  and  some  silver-work  (plate)  as  pleaseth  best  your  Grace 
to  do,  for  we  may  be  chargeable  to  your  Grace  before  all  earthly  creature. 

"  Beseeching  your  Grace,  in  our  most  humble  manner,  of  your  Grace's 
pardon  hereunto,  and  that  it  please  your  Grace  to  advertise  me  by  this 
bearer  of  your  Grace's  will  anent  the  same,  in  writing.  An'  if  it  please 
your  Grace  to  do  such  pleasure  and  honor  to  me,  your  Grace's  only  faithful 
sister,  your  Grace  shall  more  and  more  deem  the  same  merited  as  in  my 
possible  power.  Almighty  God  conserve  your  Grace  eternally. 
"By  the  evil  hand  (writing)  of  your  Grace's  humble  sister, 

"Margaret  R." 

From  the  time  of  Q,ueen  Margaret's  intimacy  with  her 
daughter-in-law,  Mary  of  Lorraine,  her  importunity  for  divorce 
ceased.  But  she  wrote  another  earnest  petition  to  her  brother 
for  alms,  by  Uothesay  Herald,  promising  never  again  to  be  "  cum- 
mersome  to  your  Grace,  but  to  guide  myself  within  bounds 
to  your  pleasure  and  my  honor."  ^  Nevertheless  she  obtained 
nothing.  She  wrote  again,  May,  1540,  but  whether  with  bet- 
ter success  can  not  be  told  :  it  was  probably  her  last  begging 
letter. 

Readers  of  history  have  been  willfully  led,  by  certain  party 

1  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  127.  ^  Ibid 

»  Ibid.  p.  181. 


240  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

authors,  into  the  mistake  of  supposing  that  every  bad  Catholic 
was  a  good  Protestant.  A  more  fatal  error  for  the  cause  of  true 
religion  can  not  exist ;  nor  can  the  enemies  of  Christianity  in 
general  receive  greater  satisfaction  than  when  they  find  iniquities 
defended  under  the  plea  that  they  are  good  for  the  advancement 
of  some  Christian  sect  or  other.  To  call  evil  good  violates  the 
truth  oftener  than  to  represent  good  as  evil ;  for,  alas  I  poor 
human  nature,  in  its  feeble  attempts  to  do  good,  too  frequently 
mingles  it  with  some  pollution  or  other.  But  to  represent  such 
conduct  as  that  of  Margaret  as  zeal  for  reformation  is  at  once  an 
insult  to  truth  and  Christianity.  After  scandalizing  all  sincere 
Christians  by  her  attempts  to  break  her  marriages,  she  aflected, 
when  she  found  sickness  and  age  advancing,  great  piety  as  a 
Roman  Catholic,  to  which  religion  she  had  been  supposed  to  be 
inimical.  "  The  young  dueen  is  all  Papist,"  wrote  Norfolk  to 
the  Lord  Privy  Seal,  Cromwell,'  "  and  the  old  Glueen  not  much 
less,  as  I  am  informed  she  hath  taken  Harry  Stuart  again  (Lord 
Methven).  She  is  now  at  Stirling,  and  therefore  Berwick  (the 
herald  of  Plenry  VIII.)  could  not  speak  with  her,  whereof  I  am 
sorry." 

Q,ueen  Margaret  authenticates  the  shrewd  remark  of  her  old 
correspondent,  Norfolk,  by  inditing  in  the  same  year  an  odd  let- 
ter, still  extant  in  the  State  Paper  Office,  which  must  have  been 
one  of  her  Easter  good  doings,  as  it  is  dated  March  1,  1540.'' 
"  The  Q,ueen  recommends  a  poor  religious  man,  Friar  Joachim, 
sometime  sacrist  of  the  Holy  Sepulcher  of  our  Lord  Jesus  in 
Jerusalem,  and  now  monk  of  the  Abbey  of  Our  Lady  of  Grace, 
situate  betwixt  the  cities  of  Jerusalem  and  Damascus,  lately 
come  to  Scotland  with  patent  letters  of  the  Patriarch  of  Jeru- 
salem, to  collect  alms  for  the  ransom  of  the  abbot  and  monks  of 
St.  Basil,  violently  taken  and  holden  in  prison  by  the  Saracen 
infidels  in  those  parts."  Her  Saracens,  of  course,  are  Arabs. 
The  friar  wished  to  pass  through  England  home,  but  dared  not, 
without  Margaret  wrote  to  her  brother  in  his  behalf  But  how 
the  redoubtable  friar-expeller  and  monk-killer  relished  this  sup- 
plication from  his  penitent  sister  has  not  come  to  light. 

She  aimed  still  at  great  influence  in  public  life,  and  was  mor- 
tified if  she  found  herself  disregarded.     When  Sir  Ralph  Sadler 

1  March  29, 1540-41,  State  Papers.     Pinkerton's  Appendix,  vol.  ii.  p.  499 
^  State  Papers,  Royal  letters. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  241 

came  to  Scotland  from  Hemy  VIIL,  in  February,  1540,  to  nego- 
tiate with  her  son  James  V.,  he  found  her  settled  in  her  winter 
apartments  at  Holyrood.  She  was  broken  in  spirit  and  infirm  in 
health.  Sir  Ralph  had  been  charged  by  her  brother,  Henry  VIIL, 
to  visit  the  "  old  (dueen,"  and  let  her  know  how  desirous  he  was 
to  hear  of  her  health  and  prosperity.  On  hearing  this  message 
she  demanded  of  the  ambassador  if  he  had  not  a  letter  from  his 
master,  and  was  displeased  and  hurt  when  she  found  the  King, 
her  brother,  had  neglected  to  write  to  her.     She  said — 

"  Though  I  be  forgotten  in  England,  never  shall  I  forget  Eng- 
land. It  would  have  been  a  small  matter  to  have  spent  a  little 
paper  and  ink  on  me,  and  much  would  it  have  been  for  my  com- 
fort. Were  it  perceived  that  the  King's  Grace,  my  brother,  did 
better  regard  me,  I  should  be  better  regarded  by  all  parties 
here." 

One  of  her  letters  to  Henry  VIIL  alludes  to  political  intelli- 
gence, which  she  had  surreptitiously  sent  to  him  : — 

"  I  trust,"  she  says,  "  you  will  stand  my  friend  and  loving  brother  in  that 
I  get  no  hurt  in  nothing  that  I  write  to  your  Grace,  nor  that  you  will  write 
nothing  concerning  me,  your  sister,  to  the  King  my  son  without  I  be  first 
advertised,  and  that  it  be  with  ray  advice.  Praying  your  Grace,  dearest 
brother,  that  it  will  please  you  to  do  this  for  me,  your  sister,  and  I  am  and 
shall  be  ever  ready  to  do  your  Grace's  will  and  pleasure.  But  I  am  afraid 
that  I  put  your  Grace  to  great  pain  and  travail  to  read  ray  oft  writing  and 
my  evil  hand.  Praying  your  Grace  to  pardon  me  of  the  same,  and  that  it 
will  please  you,  dearest  brother,  to  Tceep  secret  any  writings  that  I  send,  for 
otherwise  it  may  do  me  great  hurt ;  which  I  trust  your  Grace  will  not  do  to 
me,  your  sister,  seeing  I  am  remaining  in  this  realm,  as  God  knows,  whom 
preserve  your  Grace.     Written  at  Stirling  the  12th  day  of  May." 

Endorsed  in  a  handwriting  of  the  time — "  The  Queen  Dowager  of  Scot- 
land to  the  King's  Majesty,  12th  of  May,  1511." 

It  is  only  too  plain  that  Clueen  Margaret  was  playing  the  old 
game  of  execrable  treachery,  by  sending  intelligence  to  Scotland's 
most  formidable  enemy,  although  the  government  was  now  in  the 
hands  of  her  son,  instead  of  the  "lords-adversaries,"  or  her  "cou- 
sin Albany."  Thus  was  the  ruling  passion  strong  in  death  ;  for 
the  same  person  who,  in  her  first  letter,  wrote  mischief-making 
gossip  to  her  father  concerning  her  husband,  James  IV.,  and  Sur- 
rey, at  a  time  when  she  was  scarcely  experienced  enough  with 
the  pen  to  form  the  characters  which  conveyed  her  meaning,  now 

VOL.  I. — L 


242  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

indites  cautions,  that  her  correspondence  with  her  brother  may 
not  be  discovered  by  "  her  dearest  son." 

Wordsworth  has,  with  his  usual  admirable  skill  in  psychology, 
noted  the  identity  of  character  between  the  boyhood  and  after-life 
of  the  same  man,  by  the  terse  line,  "  The  boy  is  father  of  the 
man."  And  of  Margaret  Tudor  may  as  truly  be  said — the  girl 
was  mother  of  the  woman. 

Glueen  Margaret  was  struck  with  palsy,  Friday  afternoon,  No- 
vember 20,  at  Methven  Castle.  She  had  no  idea  that  her  sick- 
ness was  unto  death,  until  a  few  hours  before  her  decease.  She 
was  not  under  any  alarm  until  Tuesday  noon,  when  she  sent  for 
her  son,  who  was  at  Falkland  Palace.  Finding  she  became  worse 
every  moment,  she  prepared  for  death  according  to  the  rites  of 
the  Roman  Catholic  church.  Her  conscience  was  uneasy  regard- 
ing her  spouse.  Lord  Angus ;  and  she  commanded  the  friars,  to 
whom  she  confessed,  "  to  sit  on  their  knees  before  the  King,  her 
son,  and  beseech  that  he  would  be  good  and  gracious  to  Lord 
Angus."  Q,ueen  Margaret,  moreover,  exceedingly  lamented,  and 
asked  "  God  mercy  that  she  had  offended  the  said  Earl  as  she 
had."^ 

She  likewise  requested  her  confessors  to  solicit  her  son  James 
V.  for  her,  to  be  good  to  the  Lady  Margaret  Douglas  her  daugh- 
ter, and  that  he  would  give  her  what  goods  she  left,  thinking  it 
right  because  her  daughter  had  never  had  any  thing  of  her.  She 
had  made  no  will  previously  to  her  mortal  illness,  and  had  neither 
time  or  memory  to  dispose  of  her  property  after  she  was  convinced 
she  should  die.  Whatsoever  wrong  Q,ueen  Margaret  had  done 
against  her  husband  and  daughter,  she  had  not  the  satisfaction 
of  receiving  her  son's  promise  to  right  them  as  far  as  possible,  for 
she  expired  before  King  James  arrived  at  Methven  Castle.  The 
King  ordered  Oliver  Sinclair  and  John  Tennant,  two  gentlemen 
of  his  privy-chamber,  to  lock  up  all  her  property.  At  the  time 
of  her  death  the  Glueen  left  in  ready  money  but  2500  marks  Scots. 
Henry  VHL  sent  Ray,  the  Berwick  Herald,  to  learn  whether  his 
sister  was  really  dead,  and  whether  she  died  intestate.  The 
herald  obtained  the  above  information.^ 

^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.     Nov.  1541. 

2  Ibid.  Letter  of  Harry  Ray.  All  historians  place  Queen  Margaret's 
death  a  year  earlier ;  but  this  letter  from  the  State  Papers  is  decisive. 
Bishop  Lesley  falls  into  the  mistake  of  the  others. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  243 

James  V.  gave  his  mother  a  most  magnificent  funeral.  He 
attended  in  person  to  lay  her  head  in  the  grave,  and  accompanied 
her  body  from  Methven  Castle  to  Perth,  with  a  long  procession 
of  his  clergy  and  nobility.  The  burial-place  of  Glueen  Margaret 
was  in  the  Abbey  Church  of  St.  John,  belonging  to  the  great 
Carthusian  monastery,  from  which  Perth  occasionally  takes  the 
name  of  St.  Johnston,  being  situated  without  the  Southgate  Port, 
on  the  south  side  of  the  street  where  King  James  VI. 's  hospital 
has  since  been  built.  Her  coffin  was  placed  in  the  vault  of  James 
I.,  near  his  body  and  that  of  his  Q,ueen  Jane  Beaufort,  founders 
of  the  Carthusian  monastery.  On  its  demolition  by  a  mob  at  the 
Reformation,  1559,  it  is  said  that  these  bodies  were  transferred 
to  the  east  end  of  St.  John's  Church.  Q,ueen  Margaret's  resting- 
j)lace,  with  the  other  royal  remains,  is  supposed  to  be  under  a 
large  blue  marble  slab,  carved  in  two  compartments,  with  a  royal 
crown  of  Scotland  over  each,  adorned  with  fleur-de-lis.  In  con- 
firmation of  the  falsehood  purposely  given  out,  that  the  family  of 
Gowrie  was  descended  from  Margaret,  some  of  them  were  interred 
in  the  royal  sepulcher  under  this  stone,  particularly  the  young 
Earl  James,  who  died  in  1566,^ 

Margaret  Tudor  left  two  widowers ;  one  the  Earl  of  Angus, 
then  an  exile,  residing  with  her  daughter  Lady  Margaret  Douglas 
at  the  court  of  Henry  VIII.  The  other  was  Henry,  Lord  Meth- 
ven. She  was  the  mother  of  a  son  and  daughter  by  Lord  Meth- 
ven. There  is  great  mystery  concerning  their  identity,  as  they 
were  kept  in  the  shade,  owing  to  their  mother's  manceuvers  at  the 
time  of  her  second  divorce.  Both  died  early  in  life.  A  report  is 
prevalent  in  history,  that  Lady  Dorothea  Stuart,  the  daughter  of 
Q,ueen  Margaret,  was  the  mother  of  the  Earl  of  Gowrie's  nume- 
rous and  ambitious  family.  The  report  was  evidently  encouraged 
by  them,  but  was  untrue  ;  the  Lady  Dorothea  was  betrothed  to 
Lord  Gowrie,  but  died   childless.^     Burnet  quotes   a  patent  in 

^  Fleming  and  Mercer's  MS.  Chronicle,  in  Scott's  Lives  of  the  Gowries. 

2  Burnet  asserts  the  contrary ;  but,  his  errors  being  systematic,  he  and 
truth  are  seldom  on  the  same  side.  The  species  of  claim  insinuated  by  the 
Ruthvens  is  thus  expressed  by  one  of  their  partisans,  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  quoted  in  Scott's  History  of  the  Gowries: 

"  King  James  slew  Gowrie  without  fear  or  shame, 
His  brothers  closely  keepit  in  the  Tower  ; 
And  while  tliey  lived  ne'er  slept  a  quiet  hour. 


244  MARGARET     TUDOR. 

which  James  V.  confirms  the  barony  of  Methven  to  Henry  Stuart, 
his  maternal  brother,  called  the  Master  of  Methven,  who,  with 
his  father  (then  Q.ueen  Margaret's  second  widower),  was  after- 
ward killed,  valiantly  fighting  at  the  battle  of  Pinkie,  Septem- 
ber, 1547. 

Some  of  Margaret  Tudor's  mistakes  in  government,  it  is  possi- 
ble, may  be  attributed  to  the  fact  that  she  is  the  first  instance 
that  occurs,  since  Christianity  was  established  in  the  island,  of 
regnant  power  being  confided  to  the  hands  of  a  woman  who  was 
expected  to  reign  as/e>'?^me  seule.  She  had  no  education,  scarcely 
any  religion,  and  was  guided  entirely  by  her  instincts,  which  were 
not  of  an  elevated  character.  Her  misdeeds,  and  the  misfortunes 
attributable  to  her  personal  conduct,  gave  rise  to  most  of  the 
terrible  calamities  which  befell  her  descendants.  Some  persons 
among  the  aristocracy  of  Scotland  followed  her  evil  example  of 
divorce,  which  caused  long  and  angry  litigation  concerning  the 
birthright  of  their  descendants.  The  fearful  feud  between  the 
houses  of  Arran  and  Darnley-Stuart  was  of  this  kind,  which  deeply 
involved  the  prosperity  of  her  granddaughter,  Mary,  Q,ueen  of 
Scots.  And  that  hapless  Princess  was  likewise  marked  as  a  vic- 
tim by  the  cold  and  crafty  Ruthven,  on  account  of  his  family 
interests  being  affected  by  Glueen  Margaret's  marriages  and 
divorces. 

A  succession  of  tragedies,  for  three  generations,  was  the  conse- 
quence of  Margaret  Tudor's  indulgence  of  her  selfish  passions. 
Nor  are  the  woes  attendant  on  the  contempt  of  the  divine  insti- 
tution of  marriage  limited  to  the  great  ones  of  the  earth.     Many 

Queen  Margaret's  grandson  nigher  in  degree, 
"Was  Gowrie's  ruin,  and  King  James's  plea." 

They  were  not  descended  from  Margaret  Tudor  in  any  degree,  either  near 
or  far,  but  only  from  Jeane  Douglas,  the  daughter  of  her  divorced  husband 
Angus,  by  Lady  Janet  Stuart,  his  concealed  wife  ;  that  lady  being  aunt  to 
the  unfortunate  Lord  Darnley,  gave  a  nearness  in  blood  to  James  YL, 
which  he  acknowledged  to  his  own  infinite  trouble.  Those  historians  who 
can  find  no  motives  for  the  attacks  of  the  Ruthvens  on  Mary,  Queen  of 
Scots,  and  her  son,  will  do  well  (if  their  object  is  indeed  truth)  to  examine 
closely  their  mysterious  alliances  with  the  royal  family.  For  if  Darnley 
and  his  race  were  destroyed,  and  Queen  Margaret's  divorce  acted  upon, 
Ruthven's  wife  and  children  had  claims  on  the  great  personal  wealth  of 
Archibald,  Earl  of  Angus,  to  say  nothing  of  his  earldom,  which  was  a  dis- 
puted point. 


MARGARET     TUDOR.  245 

a  domestic  tragedy,  though  shrouded  in  the  obscurity  of  every-day 
life,  may  be  traced  to  the  same  cause.  Sorrow  enters  with  sin  ; 
it  desohites  the  peace  of  home  ;  and  unoffending  children  suffer 
for  the  evil  of  their  parents,  whenever  persons  are  found  to  break, 
either  by  willful  passions  or  litigious  contest,  the  earliest  law  given 
by  the  Almighty. 


MAGDALEIE  OF  FRAICE 


MAGDALENE   OF  FRANCE. 


CHAPTER    I. 


SUMMARY. 

Lineage  of  Magdalene— Curious  record  of  her  birth  by  her  grandmother— Louisa  of  Savoy 
—Her  christening— Her  governess— Costly  nursery-plate— Magdalene's  elder  sister  con- 
tracted to  James  V.  of  Scotland— Early  deaths  of  Magdalene's  sisters -Death  of  the  Queen 
her  mother— Magdalene  proposed  as  consort  of  James  V.  in  place  of  her  sister— Queen- 
mother  of  Scotland's  favorite  opposes  the  match— Captivity  of  Magdalene's  father,  Fran- 
cis I.— Magdalene  educated  by  her  aunt,  Margaret  of  Valois— Liberation  of  her  father- 
Magdalene's  step-mother— James  V.  renews  his  proposals  for  Magdalene— Death  of  her 
grandmother— Francis  I.  (^ers  Magdalene  to  James  V.— Her  rivals,  the  three  royal 
Maries— James  V,  prefers  Magdalene— Her  ill-health— Forbidden  to  quit  France— Her 
father  offers  Mary  of  Vendorae  to  James  V.  instead  of  Magdalene— James's  romantic 
expedition  to  France— Visits  Paris  and  Vendome  incognito— Secret  reports  of  his  pro- 
ceedings—Meeting between  James  and  the  Dauphin  at  St.  Sophorin- Affectionate  re- 
ception of  King  James  by  Francis  L  at  Lyons— First  public  meeting  between  James  and 
Magdalene— Their  mutual  love— Her  illness  impedes  their  union— James  accompanies 
Magdalene  to  Paris— Demands  her  formally  in  marriage— Her  younger  sister  offered  to 
James — He  will  have  none  but  Magdalene— Her  unexpected  recovery— Marriage  articles 
between  James  and  Magdalene— Her  portion— Her  jointure  as  Queen  of  Scotland. 

The  history  of  Magdalene  of  France,  the  first  consort  of  James 
V.  of  Scotland,  affords  a  touching  exemplification  of  the  oft-re- 
peated fact — 

"  The  glories  of  our  birth  and  state 
Are  shadows,  not  substantial  things." 

The  Scotch,  in  their  passionate  regrets  for  the  untimely  loss  of 
their  midsummer  Queen  of  forty  days,  have  in  sooth  enshrined 
her  memory  in  such  an  atmosphere  of  poetry  as  to  render  it  diffi- 
cult to  speak  of  her  in  that  simplicity  of  sober  prose  which  befits 
historical  biography. 

The  parentage  of  Magdalene  de  Valois  vi^as  peculiarly  illus- 
trious.   Her  father  was  that  chivalric  and  accomplished  monarch 


250  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Francis  I.,  King  of  France  ;  her  mother,  Glueen  Claude,  surnamed 
the  Good,  was  the  eldest  daughter  and  representative  of  two 
reigning  sovereigns — namely,  Louis  XII.  of  France,  and  Anne, 
Duchess  of  Bretagne,  widow  of  Charles  VIIL  of  France.  Claude 
had  been  affianced  in  childhood  to  the  Emperor  Charles,  when 
only  Duke  of  Luxembourg ;  but  the  King,  her  father,  to  prevent 
the  alienation  of  the  duchy  of  Bretagne,  of  which  she  was  the 
indisputable  heiress,  from  the  crown  of  France,  gave  her  in  mar- 
riage to  Francis  de  Valois,^  the  heir  of  that  realm  ;  thus  securing 
to  her  the  prospective  dignity  of  Q/Ueen-consort  of  France,  and  to 
her  eldest  surviving  son  by  that  marriage  the  sovereignty,  from 
which  she  was  barred  by  the  Salic  law.  Fr^wicis  succeeded  to 
the  throne  of  France  on  the  death  of  Louis  XII.  in  1515.  Q,ueen 
Claude  was  very  near  her  confinement  with  the  Princess  Mag- 
dalene, her  fifth  child,  at  the  time  she  had  to  preside  over  the 
splendid  fetes  and  tournaments  at  the  congress  of  Ardres,  called 
the  Field  of  the  Cloth-of-Gold,  in  June,  1520.  The  courts  of 
England  and  France  separated  on  the  29th  of  that  month  ;  Fran- 
cis and  Claude  returned  to  Paris,  and  subsequently  retired  to  the 
royal  new-built  chateau  of  St.  Germains-en-Laye,  where,  on  the 
10th  of  August,  Magdalene  first  saw  the  light. ^  Her  birth  is 
thus  recorded  by  the  pen  of  her  paternal  grandmother,  Louise  of 
Savoy,  in  her  curious  chronicle  of  cotemporary  events  : — 

"  In  August,  1520,  on  St.  Lawrence's  day,  at  ten  o'clock  in  the 
evening,  at  St.  Germains-en-Laye,  was  born  of  the  Q,ueen  my 
daughter,  Magdalene,  the  third  daughter  of  the  King  my  son."  ^ 

Francis  I.  having  invited  the  republic  of  Venice  to  christen  his 
new-born  daughter,  the  Venetian  ambassador,  as  the  representa- 
tive of  that  state,  bore  the  infant  princess  to  the  baptismal  font, 
and  named  her  Magdalene.  "God  preserve  the  royal  sire,  the 
mother,  and  their  children,  in  all  prosperity  !"  exclaims  their  loyal 
cotemporary,  Humbert  Vellay  ;  *  concluding  his  sprightly  chroni- 
cle with  the  remark, — "  This  written  above  was  done  before  the 
sixth  year  of  the  reign  of  our  King  Francis." 

Anne  Boleyn  was  in  the  service  of*Q,ueen  Claude  at  the  period 

1   Chronicles  of  France  and  Bretagne. 

^  Chronicle  I'Histoire  de  France,  par  Humbert  Yellay,  vol.  iv.  p.  292. 
^  Journal  of  Louisa  of  Savoy,  printed  in  Gnichenou's  History  of  Savoy, 
tome  V.     Prennes,  p.  461. 

*  Chroiiicle  I'Histoire  de  France.    Humbert  Vellay. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  251 

of  Magdalene's  birth, ^  and  was,  of  course,  present  at  the  ceremo- 
nial of  her  baptism.  Magdalene's  earliest  preceptress  was  Madame 
de  Brissac,  the  aunt  of  Brantome  the  historian,  and  the  wife  of  a 
brave  mareschal  of  France.  Some  articles  of  plate  belonging  to 
the  costly  nursery  toilet  of  the  infant  princess  subsequently  found 
their  way  into  the  royal  jewel-house  of  Scotland,  and  are  thus 
described  by  a  Scotch  cotemporary  : — 

"  Twa  lytill  culppis  of  gold,  made  to  Q/Uene  Magdalene  quhane 
sho  was  ane  barne."  In  plaui  English,  two  httle  cups  of  gold, 
made  for  dueen  Magdalene  when  she  was  a  child.  "  Item,  ane 
bassing  and  laver,  sic  lyk  maid  for  hir  in  hir  barneheid  ;  the  tane 
of  aget,  the  uther  of  jespe,  sett  in  gold,  with  ane  lytill  flacone  of 
cristalline  of  the  samyne  sorte  ;"^  which,  by  interpretation,  signi- 
fies, a  basin  and  ewer,  in  like  manner  made  for  her  in  her  infancy  ; 
the  one  of  agate,  the  other  of  jasper,  set  in  gold,  with  a  little  flagon 
of  crystal  of  the  same  fashion. 

Magdalene  had  two  brothers  older  than  herself,  Francis  the 
Dauphin,  and  Henry,  Duke  of  Orleans,  afterward  Henry  II.  of 
France ;  and  one  younger,  Charles,  who  succeeded  to  that  title 
when  Henry  became  Dauphin,  She  had  also  two  sisters  older, 
and  one  younger  than  herself^  These  royal  children  of  France 
were  all  remarkable  for  their  beauty  and  amiable  qualities.  Of 
Magdalene's  elder  sisters,  the  Princesses  Charlotte  and  Louise, 
Brantdme  thus  speaks — "  Death  came  too  soon  to  allow  the  fair 
fruit  of  which  the  hopeful  blossoms  of  their  tender  childhood  had 
given  such  beauteous  promise,  to  arrive  at  their  full  perfection ; 
but,  if  those  Princesses  had  been  spared  to  reach  maturity,  they 
would  have  been  no  whit  inferior  to  their  sisters,  either  in  intel- 
lect or  goodness,  for  their  promise  was  very  great."  ^ 

Two  years  before  Magdalene  was  born,  her  future  consort, 
James  v.,  was  engaged,  by  one  of  the  articles  of  the  solemn  treaty 
for  the  renewing  the  ancient  alliance  between  France  and  Scot- 
land, executed  at  Rouen,  1518,  to  marry  the  younger  of  these 

1  See  Life  of  Anne  Boleyn,  vol.  iv.  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  England. 

^  Inventory  of  Jewels,  &c.,  pertaining  to  King  James  V.,  taken  in  Novem- 
ber, 1542,  Book  of  the  Royal  Wardrobe  and  Jewel  House  of  Scotland,  edited 
by  Thomas  Thomson,  Esq. 

^  Royal  Genealogies  of  France.  Mezeray's  Hist.  France.  Les  Vies  do3 
Dames  Illustres  de  France. 

*  Les  Vies  des  Dtiixies  Illustres  de  France. 


252  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Princesses.  The  eldest,  Louise,  was  promised  to  the  Emperor 
Charles  V.,  but  death  dissolved  both  contracts  before  the  affianced 
brides  were  of  age  to  ratify  the  pact.  "  Thus,"  says  the  eloquent 
Brantome,  after  his  eulogium  on  their  precocious  endowments, 
"  the  beautiful  rosebuds  are  as  often  scattered  by  the  wind  as  the 
full-blown  flowers  of  the  same  tree  ;  but  those  that  are  torn  away 
in  their  immaturity  are  regretted  a  hundred  times  more  than 
those  which  have  bloomed  their  day,  and  the  misfortune  is  the 
greater." 

Independently  of  the  reasons  of  state  policy,  which  rendered 
matrimonial  alliances  with  the  united  royal  houses  of  France  and 
Bretagne  desirable,  the  princes  of  Europe  were  eager  to  secure 
consorts  from  the  nursery  of  the  good  Glueen  Claude,  who  was 
considered  a  model  of  maternal  wisdom  and  conjugal  patience. 
Instead  of  exciting  factions  by  complaints  of  the  neglect  of  her 
royal  husband,  and  the  insolent  treatment  she  experienced  from 
his  haughty  mother,  Louise  of  Savoy,  she  bore  her  wrongs  with 
unruffled  equanimity,  and  exerted  her  queenly  influence  only  in 
the  cause  of  virtue  and  religion.  She  sought  and  found  her  best 
consolation  for  her  matrimonial  infelicity  in  the  performance  of 
works  of  piety  and  charity,  and  devoting  herself  to  the  education 
of  her  children,  and  the  moral  government  of  her  household,  which 
was  considered  the  most  correct  and  best  regulated  of  any  court 
in  Europe. 

Magdalene  was  unfortunately  bereaved  of  her  mother  when 
only  four  years  old  ;  but  the  first  seeds  of  virtue  had  been  im- 
planted in  her  infant  bosom — the  bias  toward  good  had  been 
given ;  and  doubtless  this  early  and  judicious  training  of  the 
tender  child  in  the  right  way  was  the  foundation  of  all  the 
amiable  qualities  for  which  she  was  afterward  distinguished.^ 

Clueen  Claude  died  at  Blois,  on  the  20th  of  July,  1524 — a 
disastrous  year  for  the  royal  house  of  Valois,  marked  by  the 
revolt  of  the  Constable  Bourbon,  and  a  combination  of  all  the 
princes  of  Europe  against  France.  The  death  of  Magdalene's 
royal  mother  had  been  preceded  by  a  domestic  conspiracy  against 
King  Francis,  involving  the  intended  destruction  of  his  posterity. 
Brion,  one  of  the  King's  personal  confidants,  in  his  speech  to  the 

1  Tableaux  Genealogiques  de  la  Maison  Royale  de  France.  Par  P. 
Lappe,  p.  45.  Other  authorities  date  the  death  of  Claude,  October  26, 
1524. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  253 

Parliament  of  Paris,  announcing  the  discovery  of  this  treason, 
used  the  ludicrously  chosen  expression,  "  that  the  traitors  had 
intended  to  make  minced  pies  of  the  royal  children  of  France."  ^ 

In  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  there  was  a  proposal,  at  the 
suggestion  of  the  Regent  Albany,  who,  though  he  had  quitted 
Scotland,  still  had  considerable  influence  in  the  councils  of  that 
realm,  for  a  renewal  of  the  ancient  alliance  with  France,  accord- 
ing to  the  articles  of  the  Treaty  of  Rouen.  By  one  of  these 
articles,  Francis  I.  had  engaged  to  give  his  younger  daughter, 
with  a  fair  portion,  to  the  young  King  of  Scots  ;  and  as  that 
Princess  was  dead,  it  was  now  proposed  that  her  next  sister, 
Magdalene,  should  take  her  place,  with  a  French  province  for 
her  portion,  and  twenty  thousand  crowns  per  annum  as  a  pension. 
James  V.,  who  was  thirteen  years  old,  had,  in  the  interim,  received 
an  embassy  from  his  uncle  Henry  VIII.,  ofiering  to  bestow  the 
Lady  Mary,  his  only  child,  and  at  that  time  reputed  the  heiress 
of  England,  in  marriage — apparently  a  much  more  advantageous 
match,  and  more  suitable  to  him  in  age  than  the  iMite  Madame 
de  France. 

Jehan  de  Plains,  one  of  the  envoys  from  the  French  court, 
writes  from  Edinburgh  "that  the  Scotch  secretary  of  state  boasts 
that  the  King  of  England  had  offered  his  daughter  to  King  James, 
and  that  for  the  security  of  his  person,  if  he  would  meet  him  at 
York,  Henry  had  proposed  to  give  up  six  of  the  most  considerable 
persons  in  England  as  hostages."  ^  The  droll  blunder  of  the 
Scotch  diplomatist,  in  having  used  the  term  gros  personnages 
instead  of  grand — whereby  Henry  appears  to  offer  six  of  the 
fattest  persons  in  England  as  sureties  for  his  good  faith — is  slyly 
recorded,  but  without  comment,  as  the  ludicrousness  of  the 
equivoque  speaks  for  itself. 

The  Q,ueen-mother  of  Scotland,  intent  only  on  serving  her  own 
purposes,  encouraged  both  proposals,  writing  the  most  abject 
letters  to  her  brother  Henry  one  day,  expressive  of  her  deep  sense 
of  the  honor  proposed  to  her  son,  and  the  next  to  Francis,  assur- 
ing him  "  of  the  delight  it  would  give  her  to  see  a  union  between 
their  dear  children." 

The  proposed  marriage  with  Magdalene  de  Yalois  was  far 
more  popular  with  the  people  of  Scotland  than  that  with  Mary 

I  Bacon's  Life  of  Francis  I. 
/*  Archives  of  the  Kingdom  of  France,  J.  965. 


254  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Tudor  ;  and  while  the  negotiation  was  pending,  the  citizens  of 
Edinburgh  lighted  bonfires  and  made  public  rejoicings  for  the 
capture  of  Milan  by  Francis  I.  in  the  commencement  of  his 
Italian  campaign/ — an  ephemeral  and  deceitful  success,  which 
was  too  quickly  followed  by  the  fatal  battle  of  Pavia,  where  the 
royal  father  of  Magdalene  was  defeated  with  great  loss,  and  taken 
prisoner.  This  disastrous  event  occurred  February  25,  1525. 
Francis,  who  was  severely  wounded,  announced  the  bitter  tidings 
of  his  calamity  to  his  mother  in  an  autograph  letter,  containing 
only  these  memorable  words, — "  Madame,  all  is  lost  but  honor"  ^ — 
a  sentence  not  more  characteristic  of  the  spirit  of  that  chivalric 
prince  than  descriptive  of  the  state  of  his  realm.  France  was  at 
that  time  in  a  perilous  position,  convulsed  by  the  base  practices 
of  traitors  within,  and  exposed  to  the  attacks  of  powerful  foes 
without. 

The  Imperial  eagle,  "with  her  two  beaks,  that  she  might  the 
more  devour,"  hovered  over  the  long-contested  duchy  of  Burgundy, 
and  the  fair  provinces  of  the  south,  on  the  one  side  ;  the  lion  of 
England  was  in  readiness  to  assert  his  dormant  but  unforgotten 
claims  to  Normandy  and  Aquitaine,  if  not  to  the  sovereignty 
itself,  on  the  other  ;  and  even  the  Switzer  was  contemplating  the 
annexation  of  a  territory  beyond  the  Alps. 

The  reins  of  government  were  in  the  hands  of  the  most 
unpopular  woman  in  France — Louisa  of  Savoy.  The  army  Avas 
destroyed  ;  the  nobility  dispirited  by  the  loss  of  sons,  brothers,  or 
fathers  ;  tears  were  in  all  eyes,  and  gloomy  presentiments  in  every 
heart.  Among  the  few,  indeed,  who  were  unconscious  of  the 
portentous  aspect  of  the  political  horizon,  and  insensible  of  tlie 
perils  that  threatened  to  lay  the  throne  of  the  Yalois  dynasty  in 
the  dust,  were  those  whom  it  most  deeply  concerned — the  children 
of  the  captive  representative  of  that  royal  line. 

One  of  the  effects  of  the  disastrous  position  of  the  fortunes  of 
Francis  I.  was  the  nullifying  of  the  treaty  for  the  projected 
marriage  between  his  daughter,  Magdalene,  and  the  young  King 
of  Scots.  Up  to  that  moment  Magdalene's  grandmother,  Louisa 
of  Savoy,  had  kept  up  an  affectionate  correspondence  with  the 
Glueen-mother  of  Scotland,  for  the  continuance  of  the  Scotch 
alliance,  and  the  future  marriage  of  James  V.  and  the  Princess 

^  Archives  of  the  Kingdom  of  France,  J.  966. 
"^  Brantoine,  Mezeruy. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  255 

Magdalene ;  and  of  such  vital  moment  did  it  appear  to  Louisa 
that  she  had  actually  agreed  to  allow  Margaret  Tudor,  the  said 
Glueen-mother,  a  pension  of  40,000  crowns  per  annum,  for  her 
good- will  and  assistance  in  this  matter.  Henry  VIII.,  however, 
contrived  to  break  the  treaty,  by  offering  his  daughter  Mary  as  a 
consort  for  the  young  James  ;  and  officially  notifying  to  Louisa  of 
Savoy,  and  her  council  of  regency,  that  unless  the  contract 
between  the  Princess  Magdalene  and  his  nephew,  the  King  of 
Scotland,  were  abandoned,  he  would  withhold  his  promised  aid 
for  the  liberation  of  Francis  I.  Louisa  reluctantly  yielded  to  the 
force  of  circumstances ;  and  caused  her  secretary  to  write  a 
friendly  letter  to  Glueen  Margaret,  resigning  Magdalene's  claims 
to  the  hand  of  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  signifying  her  acquies- 
cence ^o  his  union  with  Mary  of  England.^ 

To  Magdalene,  the  loss  of  a  doll  would  have  appeared  a  far 
greater  misfortune  than  the  matrimonial  disappointment  which 
her  royal  sire's  calamity  involved.  She  was  at  that  painful 
epoch  happy  in  the  cherishing  care  of  her  kind  aunt,  Margaret  of 
Valois,  the  widowed  Duchess  of  Alencon,  better  known  in  history 
by  her  subsequent  title  of  Q,ueen  of  Navarre.  This  accomplished 
princess,  the  only  and  tenderly  beloved  sister  of  Francis  I.,  took 
upon  herself  the  nurture  and  education  of  his  motherless  daughter, 
and  more  than  supplied  to  her  the  place  of  the  maternal  parent, 
of  whom  Magdalene  had  been  so  early  bereaved. 

The  mental  powers  of  Margaret  of  Yalois  were,  indeed,  of  a 
much  higher  order  than  those  of  the  deceased  Q.ueen.  Her 
sister-in-law,  Claude,  was  a  good  woman,  but  Margaret  was  both 
good  and  great.  Her  learning,  her  genius,  and  lofty  grasp  of 
intellect,  rendered  her  the  most  distinguished  female  of  the  age — 
an  age  which  could  boast  of  the  daughters  of  Sir  Thomas  More, 
of  Vittoria  Colonna,  Katharine  of  Aragon,  and  Katharine  Parr. 
In  the  all-important  matter  of  religion,  too,  the  change  from 
Claude  to  Margaret  was  doubtless  highly  beneficial  to  Magdalene  ; 
for  Claude's  devotion  to  the  practice  and  principles  of  the  Papal 
church  amounted  to  superstition,  but  Margaret's  enlarged  mind 
made  her  a  Christian  of  the  church  universal ;  and  though  she 
departed  not  from  the  faith  in  which  she  had  been  educated,  she 
eschewed  its    abuses  and    exclusiveness.     She  raised  her  voice 

^  Iiiedited  Pieces  relative  to  the  History  of  Scotland  in  the  Arcliives  of 
France. 


256  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

against  persecution,  then  the  besetting  sin  of  the  monarchs  of 
Christendom  ;  and  she  protected  with  her  all-powerful  influence 
the  champions  of  the  Reformation/  The  illustrious  sister  of 
Francis  I.  is  supposed  to  have  imbued  the  mind  of  her  royal  niece 
with  the  same  liberal  principles  ^  that  rendered  herself  the  friend 
of  religious  toleration,  not  from  political  motives,  as  the  watch- 
word of  a  party,  but  on  the  divine  gromids  of  Christian  love  and 
moral  justice. 

Alarming  reports  of  the  state  of  Francis's  health  induced  Mar- 
garet to  consign  her  young  pupil  to  other  care  for  two  months, 
in  order  to  pay  him  a  visit  of  sisterly  sympathy  and  consolation. 
Francis  was  at  that  time  incarcerated  in  a  gloomy  fortress  in 
Madrid,  debarred  from  air  and  exercise,  hopeless  of  ever  behold- 
ing his  country  or  his  children  again.  After  languishing  for  sev- 
eral months  in  that  painful  state  of  "  hope  deferred  which  maketh 
the  heart  sick,"  he  was  attacked  with  fever,  which  threatened  to 
terminate  his  imprisonment  and  his  life  together.  In  this  sad 
condition  his  faithful  sister,  on  her  arrival,  found  him.  Her  in- 
dignant representations  induced  the  Emperor  to  visit  his  unfor- 
tunate captive.  The  company  and  tender  attentions  of  his  be- 
loved sister,  who  had  brought  him  cheering  tidings  of  the  fair 
promise  of  his  children,  contributed  to  restore  Francis  to  health 
and  spirits.  The  clear-sighted  Margaret,  however,  after  she  had 
conferred  with  Bourbon,  and  visited  the  Emperor  Charles  at  To- 
ledo, perceived  that  there  was  no  real  intention  of  releasing  her 
brother,  unless  on  conditions  derogatory  to  his  honor  as  a  gentle- 
man, and  his  duty  as  a  sovereign.  She  therefore  devised  a  plan 
for  his  escape,  which,  if  it  had  succeeded,  would  have  completely 
outwitted  the  cold-hearted  imperial  jailer.  Margaret  had  made 
arrangements  without  the  castle  which  would  have  insured  the 
success  of  her  scheme,  if  an  accidental  quarrel  between  his  only 
two  French  attendants  had  not  ended  in  one  of  them,  named 
Clermont  Champion,  betraying  the  project  to  the  Emperor.  That 
prince  intended  to  revenge  himself  on  the  fair  deviser  of  the  plot 
by  detaining  her  as  a  prisoner,  the  term  of  her  safe-conduct 
having  so  nearly  expired  that  he  judged  it  would  be  impossible 
for  her  to  reach  France  without  its  being  renewed,  which  he  had 
made  up  his  mind  to  refuse.  Margaret,  however,  having  timely 
notice  of  this  unchivalric  design,  left  Madrid  privately,  and, 
>  Brantome,  '  Buchanan. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  257 

traveling  night  and  day,  succeeded  in  crossing  the  frontier  of 
Navarre  one  hour  before  the  expiration  of  the  time  specified  in 
her  passport.^ 

Margaret  sought  consolation  for  her  unsuccessful  efforts  for  her 
royal  brother  by  resuming  her  maternal  care  of  his  young  daugh- 
ter, Magdalene.  Francis  finally  purchased  his  liberty  at  the 
price  of  subscribing  a  most  humihating  treaty,  and  giving  up  his 
two  eldest  sons,  Francis  the  Dauphin,  and  Henry,  Duke  of  Or- 
leans, as  hostages  for  its  performance.  Though  Magdalene  was 
too  young  to  participate  in  the  agitation  and  anxiety  which  these 
eventftil  changes  excited  in  the  bosoms  of  those  nearest  and 
dearest  to  her,  the  separation  of  her  two  elder  brothers  from  the 
infant  royal  circle,  to  be  sent  into  the  hostile  land  of  Spain,  was 
a  circumstance  likely  to  fill  her  eyes  with  tears,  and  to  awaken 
strange  and  mysterious  apprehensions  for  those  loved  companions 
of  her  infant  years.  On  the  18th  of  March  1526,  Francis, 
escorted  by  fifty  Spanish  oflficers,  arrived  at  Fontarabia,  on  the 
banks  of  the  Bidassoa,  which  bounds  the  Spanish  frontier,  at  the 
same  moment  that  his  two  boys  appeared  with  a  similar  escort 
on  the  opposite  bank,  under  the  charge  of  the  Mareschal  Lautrec. 
Both  parties  embarked  simultaneously,  and  met  in  a  large  barge, 
which  was  anchored  for  that  purpose  in  the  center  of  the  stream. 
There  the  exchange  of  the  father  for  the  sons  took  place.  Francis, 
who  appeared  afraid  of  trusting  his  own  feelings,  folded  his  chil- 
dren together  to  his  heart  in  a  brief  but  passionate  embrace, 
blessed  them,  then  breaking  from  their  innocent  endearments, 
precipitated  himself  into  the  boat  they  had  just  quitted,  and  in  a 
few  moments  landed  on  the  French  shore.  His  horse  being  in 
waiting  for  him,  he  mounted,  and,  waving  his  plumed  cap  above 
his  head,  shouted  "I  am  a  King  once  more."^ 

At  Bayonne  he  was  met  and  welcomed  by  his  mother,  his 
sister  Margaret,  and  his  children,  of  whom  Magdalene  and  an 
infant  prince  and  princess,  both  younger  than  she,  were  all  that 
now  remained  to  Francis  of  his  once  mnnerous  and  promising 
family — at  least  in  France,  for  the  Dauphin  and  the  little  Duke 
of  Orleans  were  now  both  in  the  possession  of  the  Emperor.  Re- 
gardless of  the  peril  in  which  he  was  involving  his  princely  boys, 

1  Bacon's  Life  and  Times  of  Francis  I. 

"  Brantome.  Du  Bellay.  Varillas.  Robertson's  Charles  V.  Bacon's 
Francis  I. 


258  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Francis  violated  the  treaty  for  the  performance  of  which  they 
were  the  hostages,  and  the  war  was  resumed  with  redoubled 
fury.  Reproaches,  revilings,  and  defiances  to  decide  the  quarrel 
by  single  combat,  were  exchanged  between  him  and  the  Emperor  ; 
till  at  last,  finding  it  impossible  to  agree  even  as  to  the  time  and 
place  of  a  personal  encounter,  they  wisely  referred  their  difier- 
ences  to  female  arbitration.  Francis  named  his  mother,  Louisa 
of  Savoy>  Duchess  of  Angouleme,  and  Charles  his  aunt  Margaret, 
Governess  of  the  Netherlands,  as  their  respective  plenipotentiaries. 
These  Princesses,  neither  of  whom  were  celebrated  for  dove-like 
attributes,  met  at  Cambray,  and  astonished  all  the  statesmen  and 
ecclesiastics  of  Europe  by  arranging  between  the  bellicose  rivals 
an  amicable  treaty,  which,  in  memory  of  their  mediation,  was 
called  the  Ladies'  Peace.  Francis  agreed  to  complete  his  mar- 
riage with  Charles's  sister,  the  Glueen-Dowager  of  Portugal ;  and 
Charles  to  restore  the  sons  of  Francis,  on  condition  of  being  paid 
two  millions  of  crowns  as  their  ransom.  This  peace,  which 
gave  a  step-mother  to  Magdalene,  was  proclaimed  in  the  autumn 
of  1529. 

Hitherto  Magdalene  had  resided  with  her  aunt,  Margaret  of 
Valois,  who  had  contracted  a  second  marriage  with  Henry 
d'Albret,  King  of  Navarre,  and  whose  court  was  the  resort  of 
all  that  was  brilliant  and  intellectual.  Anne  Boleyn  was  one  of 
Margaret's  ladies,  at  the  very  time  Magdalene  was  under  the 
care  of  that  accomplished  Princess  ;  ^  and  though  the  great  dif- 
ference in  age  probably  prevented  any  thing  like  friendship,  they 
were  certainly  domesticated  together  for  several  years.  Their 
acquaintance  was  thus  necessarily  of  very  early  date,  yet  there 
was  no  similarity  in  manners  or  character  between  the  young 
French  Princess  and  the  lively  English  maid  of  honor.  The 
premature  deaths  of  her  mother  and  two  elder  sisters,  combined 
with  her  own  peculiar  delicacy  of  constitution,  had  impressed 
Magdalene  with  the  salutary  conviction  of  the  uncertainty  of 
human  life  :  the  captivity  of  her  royal  father  and  brothers  had 
shown  her  enough  of  the  vicissitudes  of  fortune  to  induce  habits 
of  reflection  even  in  childhood,  and  she  is  said  to  have  been  pen- 
sive and  sensitive  beyond  her  years. 

Magdalene,  after  her  father's  second  marriage,  resided  with 
his  Gtueen,  Eleanora  of  Austria,  who  proved  a  kind  step-mother ; 
^  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  England,  vol.  iv. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  259 

and  though  she  never  succeeded  in  whining  the  love  of  her  faith- 
less lord,  who  probably  could  not  forgive  her  for  being  the  sister 
of  his  enemy,  she  conciliated  the  affections  of  his  children. 

There  was  an  attempt  in  the  spring  of  1531,  on  the  part  of 
James  V.  of  Scotland,  to  renew  his  suit  for  the  hand  of  Mag- 
dalene, by  sending  James  Hay,  Bishop  of  Ross,  and  Master 
Thomas  Erskine,  Secretary  of  State,  ambassadors  to  France, 
March  26th,  for  treating  of  marriage,  says  the  cotemporary 
Scotch  authority,  "  betwixt  our  King's  Grace  and  the  said  King 
of  France's  dochter."  ^  Magdalene  was,  however,  too  young  at 
that  period  to  be  betrothed  to  her  royal  suitor. 

On  the  22d  of  September,  the  same  year,  died  Magdalene's 
grandmother,  Louisa  of  Savoy,  Duchess  of  Angouleme.  It  was 
fortunate  for  Magdalene-  that  she  was  educated  by  her  noble- 
minded  aunt,  instead  of  being  brought  up  under  the  influence  of 
a  princess  of  the  vindictive  temper  and  inconsistent  conduct  of 
her  grandmother,  who,  while  she  scrupled  not  to  kindle  the  fires 
of  persecution  against  the  Keformers,  under  the  pretext  of  zeal 
for  the  Church,  was  in  the  practice  of  habitual  disobedience  to 
its  prohibition  against  unhallowed  attempts  to  pry  into  futurity, 

James  renewed  his  suit  for  the  hand  of  Magdalene  by  his  am- 
bassadors in  the  spring  of  1533,  the  Princess  being  then  in  her 
thirteenth  year.  Francis  replied  very  affectionately  by  letter, 
expressing  the  pleasure  and  satisfaction  it  would  afford  him  to 
complete  the  ancient  bond  of  alliance  between  himself  and  the 
King  of  Scotland  by  this  marriage.  "  Provided,"  writes  he  to 
the  latter,  "you  shall  think  good  to  wait  till  such  time  as  our 
very  dear  and  well-beloved  daughter  Magdalene  be  of  sufficient 
age  to  complete  the  said  matrimony  now  contracted  between 
you  ;  but  if,  in  the  mean  time,  either  you  or  your  subjects  should 
think  such  delay  injurious  to  your  realm,  then  we  will  give  you 
the  choice  among  all  our  nearest  relations,  or  any  other  match  in 
our  dominions,  for  a  consort,  promising  to  give  such  lady  the  rank 
of  a  daughter  of  our  own,  and  to  endow  her  suitably."  ^ 

When  Magdalene    had  completed  her  fourteenth    year,  her 

^  Diurnal  of  Occurrents,  in  the  cliarter-chest  of  Sir  John  Maxwell  of 
Polloc,  Bart.     Printed  for  the  Bannatyne  Club. 

2  Bibliotheque  du  Roi,  Collection  Dupuy,  dated  Lyons  the  23d  day  of 
June,  1583.  From  the  privately  printed  copy  of  Pieces  et  Documents 
Incdits,  Relatifs  a  I'Histoire  d'Ecosse. 


260  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

father  made  a  proposal  through  the  Duke  of  Albany,  who  was 
residing  in  France,  to  carry  the  matrimonial  treaty  into  effect  by 
an  immediate  marriage  between  the  affianced  pair.  No  sooner 
did  the  Emperor  Charles  obtain,  through  his  spies,  an  intimation 
of  what  was  on  the  tapis,  than  he  endeavored  to  traverse  the 
negotiation,  by  sending  an  ambassador  to  invest  King  James  with 
the  order  of  the  Golden  Fleece,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  induce 
him  to  abandon  the  French  alliance,  and  take  a  consort  of  his 
recommending.^  Charles  went  so  far  as  to  offer  him  his  choice 
between  three  Maries  of  his  imperial  blood — namely,  his  sister 
Mary,  widow  of  Louis,  King  of  Hungary  ;  Mary  of  England, 
daughter  of  his  aunt,  Katharine  of  Aragon,  by  Henry  VIH.  ; 
and  Mary  of  Portugal,  daughter  of  his  sister  Eleanora,  consort  of 
Francis  I,,  by  her  first  husband  :  this  Princess  was  Magdalene's 
step-sister.  Though  James  was  engaged  to  Magdalene,  and 
preferred  the  French  alliance  to  any  other,  he  indulged  in  the 
impertinent  curiosity  of  sending  the  Lord  Lion  King-of-Arms,  and 
Sir  John  Campbell  of  Loudon,  to  take  a  view  of  the  Princesses 
of  the  imperial  blood,  who  had  been  offered  to  him  by  their  august 
kinsman.  His  envoys  were  presented  to  two  of  the  said  candidates 
for  the  crown-matrimonial  of  Scotland,  whom  they  reported  as 
"fair  gentlewomen,  pleasant  in  beauty,  and  seemly  in  their 
behavior."  ^  James  desired  ta  see  their  portraits ;  but  they 
proved  so  little  to  his  satisfaction  that  he  politely  backed  out  of 
the  negotiation  by  observing  that  "  his  cousin,  Mary  of  England, 
would  be,  for  many  reasons,  the  most  convenient  match  for  him 
of  the  three  Princesses  the  Emperor  had  done  him  the  honor  of 
proposing  to  his  choice,  only  he  doubted  she  was  not  in  that 
potentate's  gift."  ^  Charles  eagerly  replied,  by  his  ambassador, 
that,  "  if  King  James  made  choice  of  her,  he  would  engage  that 
she  should  be  given  to  him." 

James,  having  no  particular  desire  to  contract  matrimony  in 
that  quarter,  evasively  answered,  "  that  a  negotiation  for  her 
would  be  attended  with  too  many  difficulties  and  delays  ;"  but 
lest  he  should  incur  the  risk  of  appearing  to  slight  the  alliance  of 
his  Imperial  Majesty,  by  refusing  all  his  female  relations  in  so 
uncompromising  a  manner,  he  made  a  complimentary  exception 
in  favor  of  the  only  one  who  had  not  been  offered  to  him,  by 

1  Buchanan.    Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  2  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 

'  Buchanan. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  2^1 

saying,  "  That  of  all  Caesar's  nieces,  Christina,  the  daughter  of 
his  sister  Isabel,  Glueen  of  Denmark,  would  be  the  most  con- 
venient alliance  for  him."  '  Charles,  whose  only  object  was  to 
break  the  French  match,  entered,  without  the  slightest  soruple, 
into  a  secret  treaty  for  the  said  marriage,  declaring  "  that  the 
Danish  princess  should  have  Norway  for  her  marriage  portion  ;"  ^ 
although  he  had  already  betrothed  her  to  another,  and  had  no 
intention  of  giving  her  to  the  Scottish  King,  who,  truth  to  tell, 
had  as  little  design  to  wed  her. 

After  several  months  had  been  v/asted  in  this  diplomatic  deceit 
on  the  one  hand,  and  idle  coquetry  on  the  other,  James  became 
seriously  desirous  of  concluding  his  matrimonial  engagernent  with 
the  Princess  Magdalene.  But  while  he  had  been  amusing  him- 
self in  listening  to  the  flattering  oilers  of  rival  candidates  for  his 
hand,  she  had  fallen  into  a  languishing  state  of  health,  and 
manifested  symptoms  of  the  family  tendency  to  consumption, 
inherited  from  the  Glueen  her  mother,  which  had  previously  cut 
off  her  two  elder  sisters  prematurely.  Francis,  who  was  seriously 
alarmed  for  the  life  of  his  fair  girl,  and  yet  felt  the  importance 
of  retaining  the  Scotch  alliance,  replied  with  unaffected  regret, 
to  James's  envoys,  "  that  the  Princess  Magdalene  was  unhappily 
not  in  a  state  of  health  to  be  removed  from  her  native  air  to  a 
cold  climate  like  Scotland  ;  and  as  her  physicians  doubted  Avhether 
she  ever  would  be  well  enough  to  fulfill  her  engagement  with 
their  royal  master,  or  strong  enough  to  bear  children  if  she  did, 
he  begged  the  King  of  Scots  to  relinquish  all  thoughts  of  her,  as 
only  likely  to  end  in  delay  and  disappointment  ;  recommending 
him  to  transfer  his  addresses  to  the  Lady  Mary  de  Bourbon,  the 
eldest  daughter  of  the  Duke  de  Vendome,  the  first  prince  of  the 
blood-royal  of  France."  In  order  to  render  this  lady  a  more 
suitable  match  for  the  King  of  Scots,  Francis  offered  to  declare 
her  his  adopted  daughter,  and  to  endow  her  with  a  portion  of  a 
hundred  thousand  crowns.^ 

While  Magdalene  was  supposed  to  be  in  a  hopeless  state  of 
health,  a  matrimonial  treaty  was  thus  opened  between  the 
bachelor  sovereign,  whom,   from  her    fifth  year,  she  had  been 

^  Buchanan.  ^  jbij.     Tytler. 

^  This  document,  which  is  in  Latin,  is  dated  the  29th  day  of  March,  1535, 
and  is  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  kingdom  of  France,  sealed  with  the 
Great  Seal  of  that  realm,  in  yellow  wax. 


262  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

taught  to  look  upon  as  her  betrothed  husband,  and  her  cousin, 
Mary  of  Vendome.  The  negotiations  proceeded  so  far,  notwith- 
standing the  vehement  opposition  of  England  and  Spain,  and  the 
intrigues  of  the  Hamiltons — who,  being  next  in  succession  to  the 
crown  of  Scotland,  were  unwilling  that  the  King  should  marry  at 
all — that  not  only  was  the  assent  of  the  King  of  France  signified 
by  letters  under  the  Great  Seal,  but  a  part  of  the  lady's  portion 
was  actually  f)aid  down  beforehand.^ 

James's  ambassadors  to  the  court  of  Yenddme  were,  David 
Beton,  Abbot  of  Arbroath,  the  Laird  of  Erskine,  and  that  earliest 
of  his  friends  and  confidants.  Sir  David  Lindsay  of  the  Mount. 
These  plenipotentiaries  were  much  caressed  by  the  Duke  and 
Duchess,  and  reported  Mademoiselle  de  Vendome  to  be  a  lady  of 
most  excellent  beauty,  and  all  princely  qualities  that  might  be 
desired  for  the  consort  of  their  royal  master.  James,  however, 
having  the  elements  of  a  hero  of  romance  in  his  composition, 
could  not  be  content  to  see  his  future  Q,ueen  through  any  eyes 
but  his  own.^  Having  devised  a  pleasant  scheme  for  paying  an 
incognito  visit  to  the  court  of  Vendome,  in  order  to  obtain  a  view 
of  the  lady  for  whom  he  was  in  treaty,  without  being  himself 
known,  he  embarked  on  the  23d  of  July  at  Leith,  with  a  hundred 
of  his  nobles,  knights,  and  gentlemen,  keeping  not  only  the  object 
of  his  voyage,  but  his  destination,  a  profound  secret.  It  was 
whispered  that  the  design  was  to  proceed  to  the  English  court,  to 
make  a  personal  treaty  of  alliance  with  his  uncle  Henry,  and  to 
wed  the  Princess  Mary.  This  delusion  was  presently  dispelled 
when  the  vessel  got  out  to  sea  ;  for,  stormy  weather  arising,  it 
became  necessary  to  tack  about,  and  the  pilot  inquiring  whither 
he  was  to  steer  in  case  of  being  compelled  to  make  some  port, 
"  Anywhere  but  to  England"  was  the  reply.  When  the  royal 
purpose  was  understood,  it  proved  so  unsatisfactory  to  those  on 
board  that  a  secret  council  was  convened  among  them  after  the 

*  This  fact  is  certified  by  a  document  in  the  Archives  of  the  kingdom  of 
France,  dated  January  — ,  1536,  by  which  James  V.,  King  of  Scotland, 
acknowledges  to  having  "received  from  the  treasurers  of  his  Majesty 
Francis  I.  of  France  the  sum  of  a  hundred  thousand  iivres,  in  twenty  thou- 
sand gold  crowns  of  the  sun,  as  the  first  installment  on  the  hundred  thou- 
sand crowns  promised  to  him  by  the  King  on  the  occasion  of  his  marriage 
with  Marie  de  Bourbon,  daughter  of  the  Due  de  Vendome." 

"^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  Diurnal  of  Occurrents,  Lesley's  History  of 
James  V. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  2C3 

King  had  retired  to  rest,  at  which  they  all  took  the  liberty  of 
protesting  against  their  sovereign's  marriage  with  the  daughter 
of  Yendorae,  as  neither  so  honorable  or  profitable  for  him  and 
the  realm  as  the  English  alliance.  Those  who  had  sisters  or 
daughters  went  so  far  as  to  say,  "  That  the  King  might  do  as 
well,  if  not  better,  at  home."  ^  Finally,  they  came  to  the  unani- 
mous resolution  of  treating  their  sovereign  as  the  property  of  the 
state,  by  ordering  the  captain  of  the  ship  to  change  the  course  of 
the  vessel,  and  bring  him  back  to  Scotland.  Sir  James  Hamilton 
of  Fynnart,  the  King's  corrupt  favorite,  took  upon  himself  the 
responsibility  of  the  deed,  by  seizing  the  rudder  and  turning  about 
the  vessel  with  his  own  hand.  When  the  King  awoke,  and 
came  on  deck,  he  was  not  aware  of  what  had  been  done  till  he 
found  himself  on  the  coast  of  Scotland,  instead  of  approaching  the 
shores  of  France.  He  was  then  so  exasperated  at  the  trick  he 
had  been  played,  that  he  would  have  had  the  captain  of  the 
vessel  hanged  for  his  presuming  to  act  in  defiance  of  his  com- 
mands, if  great  suit  had  not  been  made  for  his  life  ;  and,  for  the 
sake  of  the  poor  man's  wife  and  children,  his  Majesty  was  induced 
to  pardon  him.^  The  fact  was,  James  found  himself  a  single- 
handed  person  among  a  hundred  men,  who  had  made  up  their 
minds  to  oppose  his  will,  and  was  forced  to  submit  to  the  exigence 
of  circumstances ;  but  he  never  -forgave  those  by  whom  his 
pleasure  had  been  overruled.  He  is  said  to  have  treasured  up 
his  wrath  against  Sir  James  Hamilton,  in  particular,  till  an 
opportunity  occurred  of '  taking  deadly  vengeance  for  this  act. 
At  that  time,  however,  he  had  no  choice  but  to  return  to  his 
realm.  He  proceeded  to  Stirling,  summoned  his  council,  and 
made  bitter  complaints  of  the  presumption  and  impertinence  of 
those  who  had  hindered  his  voyage  ;  vowing,  "if  it  pleased  God 
to  lengthen  his  days,  he  would  recompense  them  according  to 
their  deserts." 

Keeping  firm  to  his  purpose  of  matrimony,  James,  after 
arranging  some  home  affairs  which  required  his  attention,  pre- 
pared himself  a  second  time  for  this  romantic  expedition.  Au- 
thorities differ  as  to  the  place  of  his  embarkation.  Lindsay  of 
Pitscottie  declares  it  was  at  Pittenweem,  others  say  Kirkcaldy ; 
and  that  quaint  cotemporary  chronology.  Diurnal  of  Occurrents, 
has  the  following  apparently  authentic  notice  of  the  event, — 
^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Buchanan.  ^  Ibid. 


264  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

''  Upon  the  first  day  of  September  the  King's  Grace  took  again 
shipboard  at  Leith  with  his  nobles  :  that  is  to  say,  the  Earls  of 
Argj'le,  Rothes,  Arran  ;  the  Lords  Fleming,  Maxwell ;  the  Lairds 
Lochinvar,  Drumlanric  ;  the  Abbot  of  Abberbrothok ;  the  Prior 
of  Pittenweem — with  others,  to  the  number  of  seven  ships,  where 
they  got  a?ie  fair  tc'i?td ;  and  on  the  tenth  day  thereafter,  the 
King  landed  with  his  company  at  Dieppe."^  By  a  fortunate 
contingency,  the  appearance  of  the  Scotch  fleet  on  the  coast  of 
Normandy  at  that  particular  juncture  had  an  auspicious  influence 
on  the  affairs  of  Francis  L,  who  was  then  in  great  distress,  the 
Emperor  Charles  having  made  an  inbreak  into  Provence  at  the 
head  of  a  formidable  army.  A  prediction,  moreover,  was  rife, 
"  that  France  would  be  conquered  that  year,  and  her  King  led 
into  captivity  a  second  time."  This  evil  augury  had  greatly  dis- 
pirited the  French,  who,  at  the  first  glimpse  of  King  James's 
squadron  in  the  distance,  feared  it  was  an  English  fleet  approach- 
ing for  a  hostile  purpose  ;  but  when  the  vessels  neared  the  shore, 
and  they  descried  the  red  lion  of  Scotland  on  the  flag  of  the 
King's  ship,  joy  succeeded  the  alarm  ;  and  a  general  report  ran 
through  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land,  that  the  King  of 
Scotland  had  come  to  the  succor  of  his  royal  ally,  King  Francis, 
with  sixteen,  nay,  some  affirmed  twenty  thousand,  of  the  choicest 
chivalry  in  his  realm — all  men  of  approved  valor. ^  This  rumor 
is  said  to  have  been  the  cause  of  the  Emperor's  sudden  and  un- 
hoped-for retreat.  James,  who  had  a  more  agreeable  object  in 
view  than  engaging  in  Continental  wars,  landed  privately  at  the 
new  haven,  Dieppe  ;  assumed  the  dress  of  a  serving-man  ;  and, 
accompanied  only  by  two  or  three  of  his  most  trusty  confidants, 
posted  to  Paris,  for  the  purpose  doubtless  of  acquiring  a  little  in- 
sight into  the  manners,  customs,  and  fashions  of  that  polite  me- 
tropolis, before  he  ventured  into  the  presence  of  the  French  Prin- 
cess to  whom  his  hand  was  engaged. 

The  Compotus  of  David  Beton,  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,^ 
bears  record  to  sundry  purchases  made  by  the  reyal  knight-errant, 

^  Diurnal  of  Occurrents,  p.  21.     Printed  for  the  Bannatyne  Club. 

2  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 

^  My  grateful  acknowledgments  are  due  to  Alexander  Macdonald,  Esq., 
for  the  loan  of  his  transcript  of  that  highly  curious  document  lately  dis- 
covered by  him  among  the  Royal  Exchequer  records  in  the  Register  House, 
Edinburgh. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  265 

while  at  Paris,  for  the  decoration  of  his  outward  man,  in  con- 
templation of  his  resumption  of  his  proper  rank.  One  of  these 
items  is  "  four  quhite  fedderis  (white  feathers)  to  the  King's 
Grace's  own  bonnet :  cost  twelve  francs  at  Paris.  The  like  sum 
was  paid  for  four  great  feathers,  to  decorate  his  horse's  head 
when  his  Majesty  should  appear  in  the  lists."  King  James, 
during  his  visit  to  Paris,  purchased  a  great  pointed  diamond, 
probably  to  loop  his  said  bonnet,  for  which  he  paid  8787  francs, 
and  ten  shillings  Scots.  There  is  also  in  the  compotus  an  item 
of  moneys  paid  for  fifty-five  spears,  bought  at  Paris  for  the  King's 
Grace.  Some  of  these  martial  weapons  were  for  the  lists,  and 
the  rest  for  encounters  of  a  more  serious  nature.  Seventy-five 
francs  were  disbursed  to  the  armorer  of  whom  they  were  pur- 
chased ;  and  thirty  shillings  Scots,  over  and  above,  by  King 
James's  order,  were  distributed  for  drink-silver  among  the  work- 
men who  made  the  spears^ — a  royal  act  of  courteous  liberality, 
which  possibly  served  to  indicate  to  the  shrewd  operatives  of 
Paris,  unaccustomed  as  they  were  to  receive  such  munificent 
largess  from  their  master's  customers,  the  quality  of  the  bonny 
Scot  for  whom  they  had  been  working.  The  following  passage, 
from  a  letter  addressed  to  Sir  George  Douglas  by  a  priest  called 
John  Penman,  evidently  one  of  the  spies  of  the  disafiected 
Douglas  party,  and  certainly  a  most  sinister  reporter  of  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  disguised  Sovereign,^  affords  a  curious  comment 
on  the  entries  in  the  Treasurer's  Compotus. 

"  Now  being  here  ordering  himself  so  foolishly,  running  up 
and  down  the  streets  of  Paris  with  only  a  servant  or  two,  buy- 
ing every  trifle  himself,  he  iceening  (supposing)  that  no  man 
knoweth  him,  whereas  every  carter  pointeth  with  the  finger,  say- 
ing '  ia  voila  le  Roy  d'  Ecosse  !'  " 

The  event  certainly  proved  that  James's  incognito  was  very 
easily  penetrated,  even  by  the  fair  lady  for  whose  sake  he  had 
assumed  it.  Leaving  Paris,  accompanied  only  by  the  keeper  of 
his  wardrobe,  a  gentleman  of  the  name  of  John  Tennant,  whose 
servant  he  pretended  to  be,  the  royal  adventurer  traveled  very 
privately  to  the  ducal  chateau  of  Vendome,  the  picturesque  ruins 

1  Compotus  of  the  Archbishop  of  St.  Andrews,  by  courteous  permission 
from  Mr.  Macdonald's  MSS.  note-book. 

^  Copies  of  these  letters,  written  in  the  old  Scotch  dialect  and  othography 
pf  the  period,  are  in  the  Cott.  Coll.,  Calig.  B.  iii.  293,  British  Museum. 

yoL.  I. — M 


266  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

of  which  still  crown  the  vine-clad  slopes  of  the  Loire,  rising 
above  the  flourishing  town  of  the  same  name  on  the  road  be- 
tween Tours  and  Chartres.  This  was  the  seat  and  territory  of 
the  elder  line  of  Bourbon,  the  Due  de  Vendome  being  the  next 
prince  of  the  blood  in  the  regal  succession  to  the  reigning  family 
of  Valois.'  King  James,  instead  of  declaring  himself,  took  the 
opportunity  which  one  of  the  Continental  fetes  or  public  days 
afforded  to  him  and  his  pretended  master,  John  Tennei^t,  of 
mingling  with  the  spectators  and  guests  of  humble  degree  at  the 
lower  end  of  the  hall,  fancying  he  should  be  able  to  make  his 
observation  perdue  on  the  young  Princess  to  whom  his  hand  was 
pledged.  Nature  had  stamped  the  impress  of  nobility  too  legibly 
on  the  graceful  and  majestic  lineaments  of  James  Stuart  for  him 
to  pass  unnoted  in  a  crowd.  The  Princess  whom  he  had  come 
so  far  to  look  upon  by  stealth,  having  been  inspired  with  scarcely 
less  curiosity  than  his  own  to  see  what  manner  of  mate  she  had 
promised  to  wed,  had,  it  seems,  procured  his  portrait,  and  the 
moment  she  saw  him,  though  in  a  serving-man's  array,  among 
the  menial  train  at  the  lower  end  of  her  father's  hall,  she  recog- 
nized him  by  the  likeness,  and  frankly  advanced  to  greet  him. 

•'  Not  his  the  face,  nor  his  the  eye 
That  youthful  maidens  wont  to  fly ; 
Forward  and  frolic  glee  was  there, 
The  will  to  do,  the  soul  to  dare. 
The  sparkling  glance  soon  blown  to  fire 
Of  hasty  love  or  headlong  ire." 

But  the  episode  from  beginning  to  end  is  best  told  by  old  Lind- 
say of  Pitscottie,  who  informs  us  that  the  fair  lady  suspected  in 
the  first  instance  that  the  King  of  Scotland  was  in  the  company, 
wherefore,  says  our  quaint  chronicler — "  She  passed  to  her  coffer, 
and  took  forth  his  picture,  which  she  had  gotten  from  Scotland 
by  a  secret  moyen  ;  then  she  knew  the  King  incontinent,  where 
he  stood  among  the  rest  of  the  company,  and  past  pertly  to  him, 
and  took  him  by  the  hand,  and  said,  '  Sir,  you  stand  over  far 
aside  ;  therefore,  if  it  please  your  Grace  to  talk  with  my  father, 
or  me,  as  you  think  for  the  present,  a  while  for  your  pleasure, 

1  Anthony  Bourbon  (the  brotlier  of  Mary  of  Vendome),  who  became 
titular  King  of  Navarre  by  his  marriage  with  Jeanne  d'Albret,  the 
daughter  of  Magdalene's  aunt,  Margaret  de  Valois,  was  the  father  of  the  re- 
nowned Henry  IV.  of  France  by  that  marriage. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  267 

you  may  if  you  will.'  The  King  hearing  this,  was  a  little 
ashamed  that  he  had  disguised  himself  to  be  unknown,  and  syne 
was  so  hastly  known  by  the  moyen  of  that  gentlewoman  ;  then 
he  passed  to  the  Duke  of  Vendome,  and  took  him  in  his  arms, 
and  the  Duke  again  made  him  due  reverence,  who  was  greatly 
rejoiced  at  the  King's  coming,  and  so  were  all  the  rest  of  the 
Duke's  company  :~  and  then  the  King  past  to  the  Duchess,  and 
embraced  and  kissed  her,  and  so  did  he  to  the  Duchess's  daugh- 
ter, and  to  all  the  rest  of  the  ladies  ;  and  syne  excused  him,  Avhy 
he  was  so  long  unknown  to  them,  desiring  their  pardon  therefore  : 
but  he  was  soon  forgiven  and  brought  unto  their  favor.  Then 
there  was  nothing  but  merriness,  banqueting,  great  cheer,  music 
and  playing  on  instruments,  playing  melodiously,  with  galliard- 
dancing  in  masks,  and  pretty  farces  and  plays — all  were  made 
unto  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  all  other  pastimes,  as  jousting 
and  running  of  great  horse,  with  all  other  pleasure  that  could  be 
devised.  There  was  made  by  the  Duke  of  Vendome  a  fair  royal 
palace,  with  all  costly  ornaments  to  decore  the  King's  honor,  viz., 
the  walls  .thereof  hung  with  tapestry  of  cloth-of-gold,  and  fine 
silk  ;  the  floor  laid  over  with  green  frieze  ;  the  beds  hung  with 
cloth-of-gold ;  and  a  pall  (or  state  canopy)  of  gold,  set  with 
precious  stones,  was  placed  over  the  King's  head  when  he  sat  at 
meat,  and  the  halls  and  chambers  were  perfumed  with  sweet 
odors,  which  were  very  costly  and  delectable  to  the  sense.  There 
was  nothing  left  by  the  Duke  of  Vendome  that  might  be  done 
to  the  King  of  Scotland's  honor  :  for  he  remained  there  the  space 
of  eight  days,  in  great  joy  and  merriness  on  both  sides,  and  many 
great  tokens  given  and  taken  by  the  King  of  Scotland  and  the 
Duke  of  Vendome's  daughter,  to  wit,  chains,  rings,  tablets  with 
diamonds,  rubies,  with  many  other  precious  jewels,  which  was  to 
their  comfort  and  joy  on  both  sides."  ^ 

Yet  the  match  came  to  nothing,  for  although  the  lady  is 
allowed  to  have  been  "  not  only  beautiful,  but  eminent  in  all 
princely  exercises,"  ^  there  was  something  about  her  which  did 
not  please  the  fastidious  taste  of  the  regal  wooer,  for  he  retreated 
from  the  engagement  with  far  greater  precipitation  than  he 
entered  it.'^ 

John  Penman,  in  his   secret  reports  to   Sir  George   Douglas, 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.         ^  Chronicle  of  Drummond  of  Hawthornden. 
^  Buchanan. 


268  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

makes  the  following  sneering  observations  on  James's  proceedings, 
after  he  had  withdrawn  from  the  ducal  court  of  Vendome,  and 
was  indulging  his  roving  inclination  in  other  quarters.  The  spy's 
letter  is  dated  Rouen,  October  22  : — 

"  As  for  tidings  here,  I  am  informed  that  the  King  will  not 
have  the  Duke's  daughter  (of  Vendome).  The  King,  James  V., 
is  yet  at  Lyons,  or  else  at  Rouen,  as  yesterday  I  hear  say  he  is 
somewhat  erased."  Not  meaning  by  this  phrase  any  imputation 
on  his  sanity,  but  merely  that  he  was  in  ill-health.  The  spy 
goes  on  to  earn  his  fees  by  abuse  of  the  young  monarch,  employed 
on  the  very  reasonable  occupation  of  choosing  a  consort  to  his 
mind  :  "  He  is  the  worst  spoken  of  men  by  his  own,  both  minions 
and  gentlemen,  where  they  dare  speak  it — that  is  the  universal 
word.  He  hath  beggared  all  Scotland,  as  they  say,  ere  he  came 
out  of  it.  Some  say  he  will  desire  the  King  of  France's  daughter  ; 
others  say  he  will  desire  naught  but  Dunbar,^  a  ship,  and  two  or 
three  horses.  King  James  hath  sent  Richard  Carmichael  into 
Scotland  with  writings  and  tokens  to  the  Lord  of  Lochleven's 
wife,  wherefore  other  somes  (some  others)  say  he  shall  (will) 
marry  her."  ^ 

It  seems  that  James  was  expected  at  Rouen  the  very  hour 
when  his  reviler  was  thus  confessing  all  his  sins  to  his  enemies  of 
the  house  of  Douglas.  "  No  man,"  Penman  continues,  "  can  tell 
how  soon  he  comes  by  post  to  put  his  loot  in  a  ship,  or  (if  he) 
tarries  all  this  winter.  There  is  with  him  Oliver  Sinclair, 
Robert  Gibbes,  Andrew  Wood,  John  Tennant,  and  James  Max- 
well of  Rouen,  and  Monsieur  Esturmail,  steward  of  the  Duke  of 
Yendome's  house  ;  George  Steele  and  his  chapel  is  in  Rouen  ; 
John  Drummond,  Henry  Kemp,  with  all  the  residue,  is  in  the 
New  Haven."  ^ 

While  King  James  had  been  coquetting  with  the  daughter  of 
Vendome,  whose  happiness  was  forever  destroyed  by  his  fickle 
courtship,  the  object  of  his  first  suit,  the  young  fair  Magdalene  of 
France,  and  her  royal  father,  were  mourning  over  the  tragic  fate 
of  the  Dauphin  Francis,  a  prince  of  the  greatest  hopes,  and  the 
darling  of  his  country  and  family. 

James  had  quitted  the   court  of  Vendome  for  the  ostensible 

^  This  fortress,  furnished  with  artillery  by  France,  was  still  kept  for  the 
Duke  of  Albany  by  a  French  garrison.     Pinkerton,  vol.  ii.  p.  339. 
2  MSS.  Cotton.,  Caligula,  B.  iii.  293.  ^  Ibid. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  269 

purpose  of  having  a  personal  conference  with  the  King  of  France, 
"  which,"  he  said,  "  was  indispensably  necessary  before  he  could 
take  any  definitive  steps  regarding  his  marriage,"  ^ — a  diplomatic 
speech  which  bore  secret  reference,  not  to  the  completion,  but  to 
the  intended  breach  of  his  engagement  to  Mademoiselle  de 
Vendome. 

Francis  L  was  then  at  Lyons  with  his  Glueen  and  family, 
employing  the  blessed  interval  of  tranquillity  which  the  unexpect- 
ed retreat  of  the  Emperor  had  restored  to  France,  in  endeavoring 
by  hunting  and  other  active  sports  to  divert  his  sorrow.  Henry, 
Duke  of  Orleans,  Magdalene's  second  brother,  who  had  succeeded 
to  the  dignity  of  Dauphin,  met  the  King  of  Scotland  one  day  at 
the  Chapel  of  St.  Sophorin,  near  Tarray,  in  the  Lyonnois.  This 
encounter,  whether  it  befell  by  accident  or  a  private  appointment, 
was  most  affectionate  ;  for  as  soon  as  the  Dauphin  saw  King 
James,  he  ran  to  him  and  took  him  in  his  arms  and  welcomed 
him,  says  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  "  heartfully,  and  showed  him  that 
his  father  would  be  blyth  of  his  coming,  as  it  stood  with  him," 
explaining  that  the  King  of  France  was  still  very  sad  for  the 
tragic  fate  of  his  eldest  son.^ 

Then  the  Dauphin  made  James  accompany  him  to  the  castle 
where  Francis  was.  When  they  arrived,  they  found  he  had 
retired  to  repose  himself  on  his  bed  for  his  afternoon's  nap.  The 
Dauphin,  however,  proceeded  directly  to  the  royal  chamber,- 
taking  King  James  with  him,  and  knocked  hastily  and  loudly  at 
the  door.^ 

"  Who  is  it  knocks  so  fast  to  disquiet  me  in  my  rest  ?"  asked 
Francis,  from  within. 

"  It  is  the  King  of  Scotland  come  to  see  your  Grace,  and  to  give 
you  coij^fort,"  replied  the  Dauphin. 

Francis,  on  hearing  these  words,  sprang  from  his  bed,  opened 
the  chamber  door,  and  received  his  royal  visitor  in  his  arms, 
exclaiming  at  the  same  time  "  that  he  thanked  God  for  sending 
so  noble  a  Prince  to  be  to  him  in  the  place  of  the  son  he  had 
lost."  Then  he  assured  James  "that  he  already  regarded  him 
with  affection,  no  less  fervent  than  if  he  had  been  his  own  son," 
and  bade  the  Dauphin  "entertain  him  with  the  same  respect  and 
love  as  if  he  were  his  elder  brother,  and  to  see  that  all   his 

I  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.  '  Ibid.  ^  Ibid. 


270  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

servants  were  treated  well,  according  to  their  degree."  ^  The 
arrival  of  the  King  of  Scotland  appeared  to  have  the  efiect  of 
rousing  Francis  from  the  morbid  state  of  depression  in  which  he 
had  allowed  himself  to  droop,  ever  since  the  death  of  the  lamented 
Dauphin  Francis.  The  melancholy  monarch  now  resumed  his 
wonted  vivacity  ;  and  having  determined  to  remove  to  one  of  his 
own  palaces,  which  afforded  greater  capabilities  for  festive  pur- 
poses, he  gave  the  word  for  the  trumpets  to  summon  every  one 
to  horse,  and  that  a  steed  meet  for  the  King  of  Scotland's  use 
should  be  provided  for  him  to  mount,  the  royal  stranger  having 
waved  all  royal  ceremonials  of  state  by  traveling  post.  The 
advent  of  a  sovereign  like  James  V.,  under  such  circumstances, 
created  a  wonderful  sensation  among  the  nobles  and  ladies  of  the 
French  court,  more  especially  the  latter.  They  marveled  at  his 
boldness  in  undertaking  so  perilous  a  voyage  in  stormy  weather, 
considering  the  roughness  of"  the  seas  and  the  danger  of  the  coast ; 
that  he  should  have  ventured  on  such  an  expedition  without 
asking  for  a  safe-conduct  from  either  the  King  of  England  or  the 
King  of  France  ;  and  that  he  should  be  traveling  in  a  strange 
land,  not  only  without  a  military  escort  for  the  protection  of  his 
person,  but  attended  by  so  few  servants.  There  was  no  court  in 
Europe  where  the  spirit  of  knight-errantry  was  so  highly  appre- 
ciated as  in  that  of  the  chivalric  Francis  I.  ;  no  man  better 
qualified,  both  by  nature  and  inclination,  to  enact  the  part  of  a 
royal  hero  of  romance  than  the  fifth  James  of  Scotland.  Gay, 
gallant,  beautiful,  and  fascinating,  he  excited  the  most  enthusias- 
tic feelings  of  admiration  in  every  breast,  but  in  none  more 
ardently  than  in  that  of  the  young  delicate  invalid,  who  had 
been  accustomed  to  regard  him,  from  her  earliest  recollection,  as 
her  affianced  husband, 

Magdalene,  it  seems,  surrendered  her  heart  at  once  to  the  ac- 
complished sovereign  to  whom  her  hand  had  been  pledged  in  her 
unconscious  childhood.  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  who  had  his  in- 
formation from  his  distinguished  kinsman.  Sir  David  Lindsay  of 
the  Mount,  one  of  the  companions  of  James's  French  adven- 
tures, tells  us  positively  that  the  King  of  France  left  Lyons  with 
the  King  of  Scotland  a  few  hours  after  the  arrival  of  that  Prince.'* 

"  That  night,"  says  he,  "  they  all  raid  to  ane  palace,  called , 

and  there  remained.     But  yet,  in  the  mean  time,  the  King  of 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie's  Chronicle.  ^  Ibid. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  271 

Scotland  ovenaiv  not  to  give  due  reverence  to  the  Q,ueen  of 
France  and  all  her  dames,  and  in  special  to  the  King's  daughter, 
Magdalene,  who  was  riding  in  ane  chariot,  because  she  was  sickly, 
and  might  not  ride  on  horse.  Yet  notwithstanding  all  her  sick- 
ness and  malice,^  fra  the  time  she  saw  the  King  of  Scotland  and 
spake  with  him  she  became  so  enamored  of  him,  and  loved  him 
so  we]],  that  she  would  have  no  man  alive  to  be  her  husband 
but  he  a]lanerlie,"  meaning  him  alone. 

There  are  instances  where  sickness,  instead  of  marring,  adds  a 
touching  charm  to  female  beauty,  especially  in  early  youth,  when 
the  malady  is  of  a  consumptive  or  hectic  character.  This  was 
the  case  with  the  Princess  Magdalene  of  France,  who  is  described 
by  cotemporaries  as  a  creature  too  fair  and  exquisite  for  this 
work-day  world,  in  which  she  was  to  have  but  brief  continuance. 
King  James,  beholding  in  her  the  realization  of  his  beau-ideal  of 
feminine  loveliness  and  grace,  determined  to  break  through  all 
contracts,  treaties,  and  entanglements  that  might  prevent  their 
union,  and  to  woo  and  win  her  for  his  Glueen. 

It  would  be  an  unphilosophical  paradox  to  deny  the  possibility 
of  love  at  first  sight,  that  feeling  proceeding  not  so  much  from 
the  attraction  of  physical  beauty  as  from  tlie  mysterious  influence 
of  an  irresistible  sympathy  between  two  persons,  which  renders 
them  necessary  to  each  other's  happiness  ;  yet  it  appears  difficult 
to  believe,  that  this  "mountain  of  affection"  could  have  been, 
heaped  up  between  James  of  Scotland  and  Magdalene  of  France 
in  the  brief  interval  from  the  unceremonious  disturbance  of  her 
august  sire's  afternoon  nap,  by  the  Dauphin  announcing  the 
arrival  of  the  royal  guest,  and  the  transit  of  the  whole  party  to 
the  palace  where  they  slept  that  night. 

The  fact  is,  that  James  had  been  several  days  at  Lyons  and 
its  neighborhood  incogiiito,  as  we  find  by  the  report  of  John  Pen- 
man the  spy,  and  others,  before  he  allowed  himself  to  be  recog- 
nized by  the  Dauphin,  and  presented  to  the  King  of  France.^ 
His  object  was,  doubtless,  similar  to  that  which  led  him  to  seek 
the  court  of  Vendome  in  disguise,  in  order  to  obtain  an  opportu- 
nity of  making  his  observations  privily  on  the  Princess  who  had 
been  recommended  to  him  for  a  consort,  before  he  bound  himself 
to  her  by  irrevocable  ties.     This  was  perfectly  consistent  with 

1  Only  a  quaint  obsolete  term  for  illness,  literally  mat-ease. 

^  See  the  previously  quoted  letter  to  Sir  George  Douglas,  dated  October  22. 


272  MAGDALENE     OF    FRANCE. 

the  royal  Stuart's  romantic  temperament  and  love  of  adventures. 
He  had  of  course  seen  Magdalene  repeatedly  during  his  sojourn 
at  Lyons,  and  might  even  have  attracted  her  attention  sufficiently 
to  satisiy  himself  that  she  M^ould  not  be  displeased  by  his  appear- 
ing subsequently  in  a  character  privileged  to  play  the  w^ooer, 
even  to  the  eldest  daughter  oi  the  Jleur-de-lys,  for  she  had  always 
said  she  would  be  a  queen.  Buchanan  declares  "  that  James 
and  Magdalene  had  become  attached  to  each  other  by  messages." 

Among  other  evidences,  not  quite  so  romantic,  of  King  James's 
visit  to  Lyons,  is  the  record  of  his  purchase  of  a  hat,  doubtless 
of  the  most  approved  French  mode,  in  preparation  for  his  intro- 
duction to  that  brilliant  court.  From  an  entry  in  the  Treasurer's 
account  of  James's  personal  expenses,  it  appears  that  ten  crowns 
were  disbursed  for  the  said  hat.  Perhaps  it  was  decorated  with 
the  quhite  fcdderis,  previously  procured  in  Paris,  and  worn  by 
the  royal  gallant  at  his  introduction  to  the  Q^ueen  of  France  and 
her  fair  step-daughter,  during  that  journey  in  the  course  of  which 
he  made  himself  so  agreeable  to  Magdalene. 

Francis  conducted  his  royal  visitor  to  Paris,  with  every  possible 
token  of  respect.  The  dress  James  wore  on  that  occasion  is  de- 
scribed, in  his  wardrobe  inventory,  under  the  head  "  Coittis,"  as 
"  ane  cott  (coat)  of  sad  cramasy  velvott,  quhilk  was  the  Kingis 
Grace's  enteric  coitt  in  Pareis,  reschit  (raised)  all  o'er,  with  gold 
cuttit  out,  on  plain  Q\diyi\i-oi-go\di,freinyeit  (fringed)  with  gold, 
and  all  cuttit  out,  knit  (closed)  with  horns,  and  lined  with  red 
taffate."  Fifty  rich  coats,  of  the  greatest  possible  variety  of 
colors  and  materials,  are  described  in  the  same  inventory  as  per- 
taining to  this  monarch,  besides  cloaks,  gowns,  and  doublets  by 
the  hundred.  Then  he  has  dozens  of  pairs  of  hose  or  trowsers, 
which  are  enumerated  under  the  heads  of  "  reid  hois,  blak  hois, 
purpoure  hois,  and  quhite  hois" — the  quhite  or  white  hose  evi- 
dently bridal  gear,  made  of  white  velvet,  ornamented  with  gold 
fringes,  or  cut- work  of  gold  cloth  :  some  are  only  of  white  cloth, 
cut  out  and  laid  on  white  taffeta.  One  pair  is  of  white  velvet, 
with  small  fringes  of  gold,  cut  out  upon  red  taffeta,  and  hipped 
with  cloth  of  red.^  In  short,  his  wardrobe  outdoes  that  of  Henry 
Vni.,  and  almost  rivals  that  of  his  cousin,  Glueen  Elizabeth. 

He  and  his  train  were  lodged  with  great  magnificence  in 
houses  adorned  with  costly  hangings,  every  thing  being  furnished 
1  Wardrobe  Book  of  Scotland. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  273 

at  the  King  of  France's  charge,  in  the  most  munificent  manner. 
Jousts,  tournaments,  and  triumphs  were  made  in  honor  of  his 
coming.  Accordmg  to  Lesley,  "  the  King  of  Scotland  showed 
himself,  in  jousting  and  exercising  and  feats  of  arms,  as  coura- 
geous and  expert  as  any  in  all  the  realm  of  France,  for  the 
quhilkes  (which)  he  was  meikle  praysit  and  commendit  aboune 
the  rest."  ^  "  The  court,"  says  Drummond  of  Hawthornden,  "is 
changed  into  an  academy  of  knightly  exercise.  King  James 
proving  himself  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  them  all." 

James  was  not  long  before  he  made  a  formal  demand  of  the 
Princess  Magdalene  for  his  queen,  "  as  the  lady  whom  he  loved 
and  delighted  in  above  all  others."  He  had  reason,  however,  to 
remember  the  quaint  proverbial  rhyme — 

"  It's  good  to  be  merry  and  wise,  and  eke  to  be  constant  and  true — 
It's  good  to  be  off  with  an  old  love,  before  you  are  on  with  a  new ;" 

for  it  was  very  properly  objected  in  reply  to  his  suit,  that  he  was 
bound,  by  a  solemn  treaty,  to  wed  the  Lady  Mary  of  Vendome 
— a  treaty  to  which  the  King  of  France  was  a  party  ;  and 
neither  as  the  sovereign  or  adopted  father  of  that  Princess  could 
Francis,  in  honor,  permit  her  to  be  rejected — even  for  his  own 
daughter.  The  most  awkward  part  of  the  business  was  the 
reckless  manner  in  which  James  had  trifled  with  the  feelings  of 
Mademoiselle  de  Vendome,  by  his  deceitful  attentions  to  her,  and 
exchange  of  love-tokens,  during  his  recent  visit  to  her  father's 
court ;  otherwise,  he  might  well  have  excused  his  desire  to  wed 
the  Princess  Magdalene  of  France,  by  the  strong  plea  that  he 
was  originally  under  contract  of  marriage  to  her,  and  that,  as 
both  Magdalene  and  himself  were  desirous  of  fulfilling  that  en- 
gagement, he  could  not,  in  conscience,  marry  Mary  of  Vendome, 
or  any  other  woman.  The  matter  was  seriously  debated  by  the 
French  Council,  for  James  would  take  no  denial ;  and  the  passion- 
ate attachment  the  Princess  Magdalene  had  conceived  for  him 
rendered  her  very  anxious  to  be  permitted  to  become  his  wife. 
Then  the  service  which  the  opportune  arrival  of  James  had 
effected,  in  causing  the  retreat  of  the  invading  armies  of  the 
Emperor,  was  taken  into  consideration  ;  and  also  that  his  father, 
James  IV.,  had  been  killed  in  battle  in  the  cause  of  France ; 

^  Historie  of  Scotland,  by  Lesley,  Bishop  of  Ross.     Printed  for  the  Ban- 
natyne  Club. 


274  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

therefore  it  was  judged  by  the  French  Council,  that,  although  he 
had  done  wrong  to  the  Lady  Mary  of  Vendome,  he  could  not 
reasonably  be  denied  his  ardent  desire  to  fullil]  his  original  en- 
gagement to  the  Princess  Magdalene/  But  those  members  of 
the  Scotch  Council  who  had  arrived  in  Paris  to  assist  in  the  ne- 
gotiations for  this  alliance,  which  their  royal  master  pursued  with 
extraordinary  eagerness,  were  not  content  that  he,  who  was  the 
last  male  of  the  royal  house  of  Stuart  in  the  direct  line,  should 
marry  a  Princess  of  too  feeble  a  constitution  to  afibrd  a  reason- 
able prospect  of  her  bringing  heirs  to  the  throne.^  Then,  too,' 
the  King  of  France,  however  desirous  he  was  of  cementing  the 
ancient  alliance  between  the  two  realms,  by  securing  the  accom- 
plished King  of  Scotland  for  his  son-in-law,  was  decidedly  opposed 
to  his  marrying  Magdalene,  because  her  physicians  had  assured 
him  "  that  she  was  not  strong  enough  to  travel  to  a  colder  climate 
than  her  own  ;  and  that,  if  she  did,  her  days  would  not  be  long." 
His  paternal  solicitude  for  the  preservation  of  her  life,  therefore, 
induced  him  to  state  all  these  objections  candidly  to  King  James  ; 
offering,  at  the  same  time,  to  bestow  her  younger  sister,  the 
Princess  Margaret,  on  him  instead.^  The  royal  lover  would  not 
hear  of  the  exchange,  but  persisted  in  his  suit  for  Magdalene, 
who  was,  according  to  the  report  of  a  quaint  Scotch  chronicler, 
"  ane  young  lady  of  pleasant  beauty,  goodly  favor,  and  comely 
manners,  above  all  others  within  the  realm  of  France."  *  King 
James  would  have  no  one  but  her,  sick  or  well,  strong  or  weak ; 
the  Lady  Magdalene  was  the  mistress  of  his  heart,  and  the  more 
difficulties  that  were  made,  the  more  eager  he  was  to  call  her 
his  own. 

As  for  Magdalene,  she  was  deaf  to  all  warnings.  She  had 
made  up  her  mind  to  be  Ciueen  of  Scotland  were  the  clime  more 
ungenial  than  Lapland,  and  the  people  greater  barbarians  than 
Muscovites.  She  would  be  content  to  leave  her  own  vine-clad 
hills,  and  all  the  refinements  and  luxuries  of  her  native  land,  to 

^  Mezeray.     History  of  France,  vol.  ii.  p.  526. 

^  Chronicles  of  Scotland  by  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 

'  Drum  mend  of  Hawthornden.     Lesley. 

*  Perhaps  the  second  Margaret  of  Valois  was  inferior  to  her  sister  in 
delicate  and  fragile  beauty ;  but  she  bears  a  high  character  for  virtue  and 
learning  among  royal  ladies.  Margaret  was  the  only  one  of  the  daughters 
of  Francis  I.  who  survived  him.  She  was  married  at  thirty-five  to  Phili- 
bert  Emmanuel,  Prince  of  Savoy. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  275 

share  the  fortunes  of  King  James.  Love,  and  the  happiness  of 
finding  herself  the  beloved  of  the  object  of  that  first  sweet  passion 
which  prevailed  in  her  young  heart  over  every  other  feeling,  did 
that  for  the  fair  invalid  which  the  skill  of  the  physicians  had 
failed  to  do — it  recalled  her  apparently  to  life,  and  all  the  hopes 
and  blissful  expectations  from  which  she  had  been  previously  cut 
oft"  in  the  spring-tide  of  existence. 

This  favorable  change  is  stated  by  Drummond  of  Hawthornden 
to  have  occurred  at  the  very  time,  her  father  was  endeavoring  to 
persuade  King  James  to  accept  her  younger  sister,  and  to  give 
her  up  on  account  of  her  constitutional  malady.  "  But  Mag- 
dalene," continues  that  poetic  chronicler,  "  by  the  glances  of  her 
princely  wooer,  regained  her  health  ;  her  body,  as  it  were,  follow- 
ing the  temperature  of  her  spirit,  as  it  appeared  to  herself  and 
her  father  ;  and  King  James  continuing  in  his  first  resolution" — 
a  matter  of  some  importance,  considering  the  fickle  disposition  of 
that  royal  lover — the  marriage  was  contracted  between  them — 
that  is  to  say,  the  marriage  contract  drawn,  the  substance  of 
which  is  thus  summed  up  by  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie, — "  That  the 
King  of  Scotland  should  marry,  and  take  to  wife,  in  presence  of 
God  and  holy  Kirk,  Magdalene,  the  King  of  France's  eldest 
daughter ;  and  love  her,  and  treat  her  according  to  her  estate, 
and  give  her  honorable  living,  and  lands  in  conjunct-fee  :  and 
also  the  bond  of  peace  contracted  with  France  should  be  renewed 
again  with  those  two  Kings,  to  endure  and  stand  forever,  like  as 
it  was  first  contracted  by  their  predecessors  afore.  And  further, 
for  cause  of  marriage  and  love  that  the  King  of  France  bore  to 
the  King  of  Scotland,  he  should  deliver  to  him,  with  his  daughter, 
within  a  year  and  day  following,  all  and  haill,  the  sum  of  a 
hundred  thousand  crowns  of  the  Sun,  besides  any  other  thing  or 
necessary  pleasures  that  the  King  of  Scotland  would  desire  of  him 
hereafter."  ^ 

Li  addition  to  the  portion  insured  by  Francis  to  his  daughter, 
he  settled  a  pension  of  thirty  thousand  francs  a  year  on  her  royal 
husband  for  life.^  James  dowered  his  consort  with  the  earldoms 
of  Sirathearn  and  Fife,  with  divers  other  lands  of  the  best  rent 

^  There  is  a  beautiful  copy  of  the  articles  of  marriage,  between  James  V. 
of  Scotland  and  Madame  Magdalene  of  France,  in  Latin,  preserved  in  the 
Advocates'  Library  in  Edinburgh. 

^  Chronicles  of  Scotland.     James  V. 


276  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

and  quality  in  Scotland,  and  his  beautiful  new-built  palace  of 
Falkland.  As  a  further  pledge  of  friendship  on  the  part  of  Francis 
to  his  future  son-in-law,  the  town  and  castle  of  Dunbar,  in  which 
the  Regent  Albany  had  left  a  French  garrison,  were  to  be  restored 
unconditionally. 

While  these  arrangements  were  progressing,  the  Court  of 
France  had  removed  from  Paris  to  Amboise,  where  both  kings 
were  sojourning,  and  Magdalene  enjoyed  a  season  of  unclouded 
happiness  in  the  society  of  her  royal  lover.  The  distinction  with 
which  that  Prince  was  treated  may  be  seen  even  by  the  unfriendly 
evidence  of  the  spy  Penman,  who  writes — "  King  James  is  much 
made  of  in  France.  He  is  put  as  the  Dauphin  was,  with  all  the 
late  Dauphin's  servants  waiting  on  him."  The  deep  mourning 
which  the  Court  of  France  was  in  for  that  lamented  Prince  did 
not  prevent  magnificent  fetes  from  being  made  in  honor  of  the 
visit  of  the  chivalric  King  of  Scotland,  whose  presence,  indeed, 
had  done  much  to  dispel  the  gloom  which  his  death  had  caused. 

The  spy  Penman  kept  a  watchful  eye  on  the  proceedings  of 
King  James  in  France,  He  had  secret  intelligence  with  a  youth 
named  Gavin,  in  the  royal  service,  who  informed  him  of  every 
thing  that  transpired,  for  in  one  of  his  postscrips  he  says,  "  Gavin 
comes  nightly  to  me  with  news." 

The  following  extract  contains  a  rich  budget  of  the  prjdng 
priest's  own  especial  gathering,  addressed  as  usual  to  his  patron, 
Sir  George  Douglas  : — ^ 

"  After  appointments  made  with  your  friends  I  returned  again  to  Rouen, 
where,  that  same  night,  I  heard  an  inkling  of  an  appointment  between  the 
French  King  and  the  King  of  Scots,  wherefore  in  the  morning  I  was  stirring 

^  The  spy  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  the  inimical  anecdotes  of  James' s 
adventures  in  France,  urges  the  Douglases  to  solicit  Henry  VIII.'s  most 
effectual  letters  for  their  pardon  and  recall  to  Scotland,  to  be  delivered  to 
James  V.  on  the  day  of  his  bridal,  which,  adds  he,  "  is  to  be  on  St.  Kathe- 
rine's  day,  if  all  promises  are  kept;  nevertheless  the  letters  of  Henry  VHI. 
should  be  with  the  King  of  France  (who  was  to  be  the  pleader  in  tlie  case) 
the  evening  before  the  marriage.  Cause  the  writings  ye  shall  send  me  to 
be  delivered  in  Depe  (Dieppe)  to  George  Hume." 

These  directions  could  never  be  complied  with,  for  some  English  person 
captured  the  dispatches  while  overhauling  the  Scotch  messenger's  budget 
either  by  sea  or  land,  and  the  copies  remain  in  the  Cottonian  Collection 
■with  this  significant  endorsement — "  The  trew  coppys  of  the  Scottish  Icttres, 
taken  of  laitfrom  a  Scott,  good  as  I thinke  to  be  seyn  {seen)" 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE,  277 

betimes,  and  posted  to  Paris  to  kno-w  the  truth  of  every  thing.  One  league 
beside  Pontoise  I  met  with  the  Abbot  of  Cupar  and  my  Lord  Erskine 
making  haste  to  the  New  Haven,  to  pass  to  Scotland  in  one  of  the  King's 
ships,  to  receive  the  Castle  of  Dunbar  with  all  its  implements  for  the  use  of 
the  King  of  Scots.  Of  a  certainty  the  King  of  Scots  shall  marry  Madame 
Magdalen,  the  French  King's  eldest  daughter.  They  shall  be  made  handfast 
the  25th  of  November  at  Blois,  or  else  at  Amboise,  where  now  both  Kings  be 
together.  Their  marriage  will  be  in  Paris  with  great  triumphs.  The  same 
day  in  Paris  will  be  married  the  Duke  of  Wo7idome's  daughter  (which  King 
James  should  have  liad)  to  the  Count  of  Auvars,"  ^ 

The  marriage  contract  between  James  V.  of  Scotland  and 
Magdalene  de  Valois,  was  signed  at  the  Castle  of  Blois  (Nov, 
26,  1536),  and  the  lovers  were  solemnly  affianced  to  each  other. 
Their  ages  were  very  suitable  ;  James  was  five-and-twenty,  and 
Magdalene  had  completed  her  sixteenth  year  in  the  preceding 
August.  The  bridal-day  being  fixed  for  the  1st  of  January 
following,  King  James  issued  his  royal  letters  of  summons  to  such 
of  his  prelates  and  nobles  as  he  thought  proper  to  invite,  requiring 
them  to  do  their  devoir  by  giving  their  attendance  at  the  solemniza- 
tion of  his  marriage,  for  which  purpose  they  were  to  convene  at 
Paris  on  the  day  appointed  "  in  their  best  array,  for  the  honor 
of  Scotland,  as  they  would  do  him  a  special  pleasure  and  service." 

The  Lords,  both  spiritual  and  temporal,  to  whom  the  King's 
letters  were  addressed,  being  dutifully  disposed,  were  well  content 
to  obey  his  requisition,  and  as  many  as  he  had  sent  for  made 
themselves  ready  in  all  haste  to  come  to  him,  "  every  ane  very 
well  furnished  and  attired,"  says  old  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie, 
"  according  to  their  estates.  And  they  that  passed  to  France 
were  six  earls,  six  lords,  six  bishops,  and  twenty  great  barons, 
who  were  most  familiar  with  the  King.  These  all  arrived  at 
Paris  at  the  appointed  time,  and  were  heartily  welcomed  by  the 
King  of  France  and  his  Council,  and  were  entertained  according 

^  Francis  I.  had  contrived,  it  seems,  to  pacify  the  Due  de  Vendome  for 
the  slight  his  daughter  had  received,  probably  by  pleading  the  uncontrolla- 
ble love  of  his  own  girl  to  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  the  pre-contract,  which, 
under  those  circumstances,  would  have  prevented  a  lawful  marriage  be- 
tween that  Prince  and  any  other  lady.  Moreover,  he  had  been  so  obliging 
as  to  provide  another  consort  of  suitable  rank  for  the  Lady  Mary  of  Ven- 
dome, if  she  would  have  been  content  to  espouse  him ;  her  truant  lover, 
the  King  of  Scots,  had  offered  to  bestow  her  upon  him  at  the  altar.  But 
she  indignantly  declined  all  matrimonial  overtures,  and  declared  her  prefer- 
ence of  a  coavent. 


278  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

to  their  degree.*  Also  the  King  of  Scotland,"  continues  Lindsay, 
"  was  right  rejoiced  when  he  saw  his  subjects  so  obedient  to  do 
him  honor  and  service." 

Francis  I.,  desiring  to  offer  very  signal  marks  of  honor  to  his 
royal  son-in-law  elect,  ordained  that  the  Parliament  of  Paris,  with 
the  president,  secretaries,  and  all  the  officers  and  members  of  that 
body,  should  go  in  procession,  clad  in  red  robes,  to  offer  a  con- 
gratulatory address  to  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  then  head  the 
cavalcade  that  was  to  precede  that  monarch  in  his  state  entrance 
into  Paris,  as  the  affianced  bridegroom  of  the  Princess  Magdalene, 
and  conduct  him  to  the  lodgings  that  had  been  assigned  to  him 
for  the  vigil  of  his  bridal-day.  This  mandate  was,  however, 
very  displeasing  to  that  body,  and  a  serious  remonstrance  was 
presented  to  the  King  of  France  at  Fontainebleau,  by  a  deputa- 
tion of  the  members,  objecting,  in  the  first  place,  that  the  Parlia- 
ment of  Paris  was  not  accustomed  to  offer  such  a  compliment  to 
any  foreign  prince  or  potentate,  but  only  to  the  Kings  and  Glueens 
of  France  ;  and  they  begged  him  to  consider  well  the  bad 
consequences  that  might  result  from  such  innovation  of  their 
ancient  customs.  In  reply  to  this  remonstrance,  Francis  I.  told 
them,  "  that  the  King  of  Scotland,  having  come  in  person  to 
prefer  his  suit  for  the  hand  of  the  Princess  Magdalene,  instead  of 
sending  procurators  for  that  purpose,  he  particularly  desired  to 
treat  him  as  one  of  his  own  family,  and  that  the  saiiie  honors 
might  be  paid  to  him  ;"  adding,  "  that  he  considered  King  James 
of  Scotland  was  entitled  to  far  greater  consideration  than  any 
foreign  prince  whatsoever  ;  therefore  he  besought  his  Parliament 
to  wave  any  etiquette  that  might  prevent  him  from  giving  his 
faithful  ally  and  dearest  son-in-law  this  mark  of  respect."  The 
deputation  also  delivered  a  solemn  protest  against  any  alteration 
in  the  costume  of  the  Parliament,  stating  that  the  Lord  President, 
secretaries,  &c.,  of  that  .body  were  accustomed  to  wear  black 
velvet  robes,  and  hats  of  the  same.  The  members  occupied 
nearly  a  week  in  debating  on  this  matter  before  they  would  sub- 
mit to  the  royal  pleasure.  Finally,  however,  they  assembled  on 
Sunday  the  31st  of  December,  about  one  o'clock  at  noon,  in  the 
court  of  the  palace,  according  to  the  King's  command,  grandly 
arrayed  in  their  new  scarlet  robes,  and  with  velvet  caps,  those  of 
the  President  and  highest  officials  being  furred  with  miniver 
(spelled  in  the  original  document  7ne7iu  vair).     At  two  o'clock 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  279 

they  mounted  their  horses,  and  rode  in  solemn  cavalcade,  two 
and  two,  over  the  bridge  of  Notre  Dame,  and  so  to  St.  Anthony 
in  the  fields  near  Paris,  where  the  King  of  Scotland  was  abiding 
with  many  princes  and  all  the  great  lords  of  his  realm.  The 
President,  notaries,  and  officers  of  the  Parliament  having  been 
presented  to  the  King  of  Scotland,  and  performed  their  compli- 
mentary obeisances,  declared  their  errand — namely,  that  they 
had  come  in  procession  to  conduct  him  to  the  Archbishop's  palace 
at  Notre  Dame,  where  he  and  his  train  were  to  sleep. 

King  James  gave  the  members  of  this  deputation  extraordinary 
the  most  gracious  reception  in  his  power  to  bestow,  by  embracing 
the  Lord  President,  but  without  making  any  speech  in  reply  to 
their  complimentary  address,  "  because,"  says  the  recording  secre- 
tary, "he  knew  so  little  of  the  French  language."  ^ 

All  due  ceremonies,  however,  having  been  exchanged,  the 
procession  formed  and  preceded  the  royal  bridegroom,  who,  attend- 
ed by  a  fair  and  numerous  company  of  princes,  nobles,  and 
knights,  was  brought  to  the  Church  of  Notre  Dame,  where  he 
was  received  with  the  honors  meet  for  him,  and  lodged  that 
night  in  the  Episcopal  palace,  in  readiness  for  the  solemnization 
of  his  marriage  with  the  fair  Magdalene,  which  was  appointed  to 
take  place  at  an  early  hour  on  the  following  day." 

^  Registres  du  Parlement,  1536.  Bibliotlicnue  du  Roi,  Collection  Dupuy, 
tome  325.  Printed  in  Pieces  et  Documents  Inedits  relatifs  a  I'Histoire 
d'Ecosse.     Unpublished.  ^  Ibid. 


CHAPTER    II. 


SUMMARY. 
Magdalene  nnd  James  married  at  Notre  Dame,  Paris— Historical  painting  representing 
the  nuptials — Description  of  Magdalene's  person  and  dress— ilonsard  writes  the  epitha- 
lamium — Nuptial  banqviet — King  James's  costly  offering  at  the  dessert — His  New- Year's 
gifts— Magdalene  and  James  winter  at  Paris— Their  popularity— Royal  presents  Irom  the 
King  of  France  to  James  and  Magdalene  at  parting — Journey  to  Rouen — Francis  I. 
gives  security  for  Magdalene's  portion — Her  letter  to  the  Chancellor  of  France — Magda- 
lene embarks  with  her  husband  for  Scotland — Stormy  voyage — English  ships  prepare 
to  intercept  them — They  land  at  Leith — Royally  welcomed — Popular  action  of  the  Queen 
— Arrival  at  Holyrood — Prospect  of  an  hoir  to  Scotland — Joy  of  the  people — Queen 
Magdalene's  reception  in  Scotland — Improved  state  of  her  health — Her  physician,  Mas- 
ter Patrix — Preparations  for  her  coronation — Magdalene's  relapse  of  illness — Goes  to 
Balmerino  Abbey  for  change  of  air — She  rallies — Her  letter  to  the  King  her  father — De- 
clares herself  convalescent — Second  relapse — Reports  of  Madame  de  Montrieul  regarding 
the  Queen's  sickness — Scotland  inimical  to  her  health — King  James's  anxious  care  for 
her— Magdalene  falls  ill  of  a  fever— Dies  at  Holyrood  forty  days  after  her  landing— Grief 
of  the  King  and  his  people — General  mourning — Her  epitaph  by  Buchanan — "De- 
ploration"  by  Sir  David  Lindsay— Verses  by  Robert  Firmyn,  &c.— Her  bridal  dresses- 
Place  other  interment  in  Holyrood  Abbey— Exhumation  of  her  remains. 

The  nuptials  of  the  royal  lovers  vi^ere  solemnized  in  the  Cathe- 
dral of  Notre  Dame,  on  the  1st  of  January,  1537,  at  ten  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  with  unusual  splendor.  Seven  cardinals  assisted 
at  the  ceremonial ;  the  Kings  and  Glueens  of  France  and  Na- 
varre, the  Dauphin,  the  Duke  of  Orleans,  M^ith  all  the  nobility 
of  France,  and  the  loyal  portion  of  that  of  Scotland  being  present ; 
besides  an  innumerable  multitude  of  less  distinguished,  but  not 
less  lovingly  disposed  persons.  Cold,  indeed,  must  have  been  the 
hearts  of  the  spectators  of  that  marriage  who  did  not  rejoice  in 
seeing  the  daughter  of  their  good  Glueen  Claude,  over  whom  the 
shadow  of  death  had  so  long  impended,  rescued,  as  it  appeared, 
from  the  grasp  of  the  grim  tyrant  by  victorious  love,  and  led  in 
her  nuptial  splendor  from  the  altar  of  Notre  Dame,  as  the  hap- 
piest of  happy  brides,  by  the  royal  knight-errant  who  had  wooed 
and  won  her  for  his  queen. 

The  portraits  of  Magdalene  of  France  are  very  rare  ;  that 
which  forms  the  frontispiece  of  this  volume  is  a  carefully  reduced 
original  copy,  engraved  for  the  first  time,  expressly  for  this  work, 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  281 

by  the  courteous  permission  of  the  Earl  of  Elgin,  from  the  whole- 
length  figure  of  that  Uueen  in  the  curious  cotemporary  painting 
of  her  marriage  with  James  V.,  in  his  lordship's  collection  at 
Broomhall  in  Fifeshire/  The  following  descriptive  note  of  this 
fine  historical  picture  may  be  interesting  to  some  of  our  readers, 
especially  those  who  are  Ibnd  of  ancient  costume.  Magdalene  is 
very  lovely  ;  her  features  are  small,  regular,  and  delicate  ;  her 
complexion  fair,  with  light  brown  hair,  which  is  simply  and 
becomingly  arranged  in  curls  and  plaits.  She  wears  a  small 
round  cap,  formed  of  a  network  of  pearls  and  jewels.  She  is 
tall,  slender,  and  graceful  in  stature,  with  a  long  throat,  elegantly 
molded.  Her  countenance  is  indicative  of  feminine  sweetness 
and  sensibility,  and  there  is  something  very  maidenly  in  her 
attitude,  as  she  stands  with  downcast  eyes,  bending  her  head 
slightly  forward,  and  extending  her  hand  to  receive  the  nuptial 
ring.  Her  dress  is  white  damask,  embroidered  with  gold,  fitting 
closely  to  her  shape,  finished  at  the  throat  with  a  small  quilled 
double  rufT,  parted  with  a  collar  of  gems.  A  cordon  of  large 
pearls  is  carelessly  knotted  round  her  neck,  and  descends  below 
her  girdle,  which  is  of  gems.  The  upper  part  of  her  sleeves  is 
formed  of  three  double  frills  or  puffings,  rising  a  little  above  the 
shoulders  ;  below  these  epaulettes  the  sleeves  are  tight  to  the 
arms,  and  finished  with  small  ruffles,  and  bracelets  at  the  wrists. 
It  is  impossible  for  any  thing  to  be  more  chastely  elegant  and 
becoming  than  this  costume,  which  would  not  be  at  all  unsuitable 
for  a  royal  or  noble  bride  of  the  present  day.  The  bridegroom 
wears  a  short  full  mantle  of  dark  blue  velvet,  furred  Avith  sable, 
and  pantaloon  hose  of  white  satin.  He  is  bareheaded,  very 
handsome,  of  a  noble  presence,  and  his  gay  and  spirited  demeanor 
is  quite  in  accordance  with  his  character.  The  officiating  cardi- 
nal is  preparing  to  join  their  hands  ;  his  six  coadjutors,  in  scarlet 
caps  and  capes,  stand  all-a-row,  looking  rather  supernumeraries. 
Francis  I.  wears  hat  and  plume,  being  the  only  person  covered 
except  the  cardinals.  He  has  a  pleasant  smile  on  his  face,  as  if 
rejoicing  in  the  happiness  of  his  daughter  and  her  gallant  bride- 
groom, who  looks  a  help  meet  for  so  tender  a  flower  to  cling  to. 
Behind  the  Princess  Magdalene  are  her  three  bride-maidens, 
arrayed  like  herself  in  white  dresses  trimmed  with  gold — only 

^  Which  formerly  decorated  the  gallery  of  the  Luxembourg;  Palace,  and 
was  purchased  by  the  late  Earl  of  Elgin  in  Paris,  soon  after  the  Revolution. 


282  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

their  sleeves  are  green.  Her  train  is  supported  by  a  dwarf  fan- 
tastically attired,  and  wearing  a  hat  with  a  feather  in  it.  This 
painting  is  a  beautiful  work  of  art,  and  invaluable  as  a  pictorial 
record  of  a  most  interesting  historical  event,  with  portraits  of  the 
royal  actors  in  the  bridal  tableau,  full  of  character  and  rich  in 
costume. 

The  bridal  epithalamium  of  the  royal  pair  was  written  by 
Ronsard,  the  celebrated  French  lyrist,  then  a  youthful  page  in 
the  service  of  Magdalene's  youngest  brother,  the  Duke  of  Orleans. 
He  had  been  brought  up  in  the  family  of  her  aunt,  Margaret 
Gtueen  of  Navarre,  at  the  same  time  that  Magdalene,  who  was 
undoubtedly  one  of  his  earliest  themes  of  inspiration,  was  under 
the  care  of  that  illustrious  lady.  The  courtier  poet  has  given  a 
minute  and  glowing  description  of  Magdalene's  charms  in  his 
epithalamium,  and  he  also  describes  her  royal  bridegroom  as 
highly  gifted  by  nature. 

Sir  David  Lindsay  of  the  Mount,  Lord  Lion  King-of-Arms, 
who  was  present  at  the  marriage  of  his  sovereign  with  Magda- 
lene of  France,  most  probably  composed  the  following  lines  at 
that  time,  which  he  subsequently  introduced  into  his  Deploration 
on  the  untimely  death  of  that  young  bride.  The  verse  com- 
mences with  an  apostrophe  to  Venus  and  her  "blind  son  Cupido," 
assuring  them,  in  his  quaint  rhymes,  that  in  their  courts  they 
never  had  such  a  pair  of  leal  or  true  lovers  without  dissimula- 
tion : — 

"  As  James  the  Fifth  and  Magdalene  of  France, 
Descending  both  of  blood  imperial, 
To  whom  in  love  I  find  no  peregal. 
For  as  Leander  swam  out  through  the  flood 
To  his  fair  lady  Hero  many  nights, 
So  did  this  Prince  through  bullering  streams, 
"With  earls,  barons,  squires,  and  with  knights  good, 
Contrair  ISTeptune  and  Eole,  and  their  mights, 
And  left  this  realm  into  great  desperance, 
To  seek  his  love  the  first  daughter  of  France. 
And  she,  like  prudent  Queen  Penelope, 
Right  constantly  will  change  him  for  none  other ; 
And  at  his  pleasure  left  her  own  countrie. 
Without  regard  to  father  and  to  mother, 
Taking  no  care  of  sister,  or  of  brother. 
But  shortly  took  her  leave,  and  left  them  all, 
For  love  to  him,  to  whom  love  made  her  thral. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  283 

O  Paris  of  all  cities  principal, 

Who  did  receive  our  Prince  with  laud  and  glory, 

Solemnply  through  arches  triumpjhal, 

Which  day  been  dign  to  put  in  memory ; 

For  as  Pompey  after  his  victory 

Was  into  Rome  received  with  great  joy, 

So  thou  receiv'dst  our  right  redoubted  Roy ; 

But  at  his  marriage,  made  upon  the  morn, 

Such  solace  and  solemnization 

Was  never  seen  since  Christ  was  born. 

Nor  to  Scotland  such  consolation — 

There  sealed  was  the  confirmation 

Of  the  well  kecpecl  ancient  alliance 

Made  between  Scotland  and  the  realm  of  France," 


Tii )  nuptial  banquet  which  had  been  provided  by  the  illustri- 
ous father  of  the  bride,  in  honor  of  this  event,  exceeded  in  elegance 
and  magnificence  every  thing  of  the  kind  that  had  ever  been 
devised,  and  was,  of  course,  intended  to  dazzle  and  astonish 
the  nobles  of  Scotland,  by  a  display  of  luxury  and  wealth  to 
whicix  they  were  supposed  to  be  little  accustomed.  But  the 
royal  bridegroom,  jealous  of  the  honor  of  Scotland,  had,  with  the 
noble  spirit  that  was  natural  to  him,  prepared  to  vindicate  his 
realn,!  from  the  proverbial  reproach  of  poverty,  by  providing  a 
much  greater  surprise  for  the  French  nobles  and  their  King  ;  for 
he  caused  a  course  of  covered  cups  to  be  introduced  at  the  dessert, 
with  the  intimation  "  that  they  contained  fruits  that  were  the 
natuial  produce  of  his  own  country  ;"  then,  ordering  the  covers 
to  be  raised,  he  showed  that  the  cups  were  full  of  gold-dust,  and 
pieces  of  gold,  which  he  distributed  among  the  guests.^  This 
precious  ore  was  found,  it  seems,  in  the  mines  of  Crawford  Moor, 
which  were  then  worked  successfully  by  Germans.^ 

1  Encyclopaedia  Britannica,  Art.  Scotland. 

2  The  well-known  tradition  related  by  Sir  Walter  Scott  has  evident  re- 
ference to  this  historical  incident.  "  He  (James  V.)  told  some  French  nobles 
who  were  his  guests  on  one  occasion,  that  they  should  see  served  up,  after 
dinner,  the  fruits  of  his  country.  They  did  not  expect  any  very  rich  dessert, 
from  the  gray  and  cold  aspect  of  the  hills,  but  were  agreeably  surprised  at 
the  appearance  of  a  charger  full  of  his  beautiful  gold  coins,  called  his  Bon- 
net pieces,  from  his  efHgy  struck  thereon  in  the  berret  cap  he  usually  wore. 
The  coinage  was  considered  to  be  of  the  brightest  and  purest  gold  ever  seen 
in  North  Britain,  and  assuredly  a  more  noble  head  and  profile  was  never 
impressed  on  coin  or  medal  than  the  likeness  of  James  m  his  ordinary  garb." 


284  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

In  the  evening  the  banquet  was  in  the  grand  hall  of  the  pal- 
ace, on  which  occasion  the  members  of  the  Court  of  Parliament 
were  among  the  invited  guests,  and  attended  in  their  red  robes. 
After  supper  there  were  games,  dances,  and  splendid  masks.* 

King  James's  New- Year's  gifts  to  minstrels  and  musicians,  on 
this  occasion,  were  as  follows,^ — "Item  given  to  the  King  of 
France's  trumpets  for  their  New- Year's  gifts,  twenty-two  crowns; 
to  his  hautboys,  twenty-two  crowns ;  to  his  siflers  (fifers),  six 
crowns ;  to  his  cornets,  sixteen  crowns.  To  the  dueen  of  Na- 
varre's hautboys,  ten  crowns."  Lastly,  James  gave  a  benefac- 
tion of  twelve  crowns  to  the  tambourner  of  his  royal  bride.  It 
was  a  well-calculated  economy  thus  to  unite  the  New- Year's  and 
the  bridal  gifts.  The  good  people  of  Paris,  who  had  watched 
with  sympathizing  interest  the  progress  of  this  royal  romance  of 
love  and  wedlock,  had  their  full  share  of  pleasure  in  the  fetes 
and  pageants  which  took  place  in  honor  of  the  bridal  of  "Ze  heau 
Roi  d'Ecosse,'"  as  they  styled  King  James  V.,  with  the  eldest 
daughter  of  France,  "for,"  says  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  "there 
never  was  so  great  a  solemnity  and  triumph  seen  in  France  in 
one  day,  as  was  then,  since  the  time  of  King  Charles  the  Main. 
For  there  was  such  jousting  and  tournaments,  both  on  horse  and 
foot,  in  burgh  and  land,  and  also  upon  the  sea  with  ships  ;  and 
so  much  artillery  shot  in  all  parts  of  France,  both  on  the  land 
and  sea,  in  castles,  towns,  and  villages,  that  no  man  might  hear 
for  the  reard  (roaring)  thereof;  and  also  the  riotous  banqueting, 
delicate  and  costly  clothings,  triumphant  plays  and  feasts,  with 
pleasant  sound  of  instruments  of  all  kinds ;  and  also  cunning 
carvers,  having  the  art  of  necromancy,  to  cause  things  appear 
which  were  not,  as,  flying  dragons  in  the  air,  shots  of  fire  at 
other's  heads,  great  rivers  of  waters  running  through  the  town, 
and  ships  fighting  thereupon,  as  it  had  been  in  ballering  streams 
of  the  sea,  shooting  of  guns  like  cracks  of  thunder  :  and  these 
wonders  were  seen  both  by  the  nobility  and  common  people." 

It  should  seem  that  the  nigromancy,  or  rather  the  magic  of 
art,  which  produced  the  efi^ects  thus  naively  'described  by  our 
quaint  chronicler,  was  the  result  of  the  combined  eflbrts  of  the 
practical  science  of  ^Scotch  as  well  as  French  men  ;  for  he  says, 
"  All  this  was  made  by  men  of  ingine  for  outsetting  of  the  tri- 

1  Kecords  of  the  French  Parliament,  Dupuy  Collection,  Bibl.  du  Roi. 
'  Lord  Treasurer's  Accounts,  Register  House,  Edinburgh. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE,  285 

umph  to  do  the  King  of  Scotland  and  the  King  of  France,  their 
masteris,  honor  and  pleasure."  ^ 

Whether  by  "men  of  ingine,'"  Lindsay 'of  Pitscottie  means 
ingenious  men,  or  civil  engineers,  we  do  not  presume  to  decide, 
but  it  is  certain  that  no  artists  of  the  far-famed  pyrotechnic 
school  of  the  present  day  could  have  more  brilliant  success,  or 
give  greater  delight. 

When  Francis  I.  dispatched  Pommeraye  to  the  court  of  Eng- 
land with  the  ceremonial  announcement  of  the  marriage  of  his 
eldest  daughter  to  the  King  of  Scotland,  the  royal  uncle  of  the 
bridegroom,  Henry  YIII.,  who  had  done  all  he  could  to  traverse 
the  alliance,  behaved  with  signal  discourtesy.  He  was  four  days 
before  he  would  grant  the  ambassador  an  audience,  and  when  he 
did,  it  was  only  to  give  vent  to  his  angry  feelings  on  the  occasion 
of  this  alliance.  Instead  of  a  formial  letter  or  pleasant  message 
of  congratulation,  he  said  all  manner  of  disobliging  things,  and 
dismissed  Pommeraye  without  entering  into  any  business. '^ 
Henry  was  doubtless  deeply  mortified  at  the  superior  good  for- 
tune of  his  nephew,  who  not  only  had  contracted  a  most  splendid 
alliance  in  every  point  of  view,  but  had  won  the  heart  as  well  as 
the  hand  of  the  fairest  and  most  amiable  princess  in  Europe. 

Instead  of  being,  like  other  royal  brides,  hurried  away  to  a  land 
of  strangers  as  soon  as  the  nuptials  were  solemnized,  the  young 
dueen  of  Scotland  was  allowed  by  her  indulgent  husband  to  re- 
main at  her  father's  court  to  grace  the  fetes,  and  witness  the 
pageants  and  rejoicings  that  took  place  in  honor  of  their  mar- 
riage, James  was,  indeed,  too  tender  of  her  health  to  expose  her 
to  the  perils  of  a  wintry  voyage,  and  the  sharp  air  of  Scotland, 
at  that  cold  season  ;  so,  abandoning  the  cares  of  empire  to  his 
cabinet,  he  gave  himself  up  to  the  delights  of  her  society  and  the 
pleasures  of  her  father's  court.  It  was  impossible  for  Francis  I, 
to  have  found  a  son-in-law  more  entirely  after  his  own  heart  than 
the  consort  on  whom  he  had  bestowed  his  eldest  daughter. 
There  was,  indeed,  a  remarkable  similarity  in  character  between 
James  of  Scotland  and  Francis  de  Valois,  Both  were  animated 
with  the  like  chivalric  spirit — gay,  gallant,  adventurous,  gener- 
ous, and  imprudent.  Both  were  lovers  of  music,  poetry,  and  the 
fine  arts,  were   munificent  patrons  of  literature,   and  possessed 

*  Chronicles  of  Scotland,  James  V. 

^  Mezeray's  Hist,  of  France,  vol.  ii,  p.  526. 


286  BIAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

exquisite  taste  in  architecture — in  short,  a  perfect  sympathy  in 
all  their  characteristics  and  pursuits  united  them.  While  the 
young  King  and  (iueen  of  Scotland  continued  in  France,  waiting 
for  the  arrival  of  the  tardy  spring,  every  thing  that  could  be  de- 
vised to  render  their  sojourn  agreeable  was  done.  Such  was 
King  James's  influence  with  his  illustrious  father-in-law  that  he 
dispensed  pardons  to  prisoners,  and  disposed  of  all  the  preferments 
in  church  and  state  in  that  realm,  as  freely  as  if  they  had  been  in 
his  own ;  lor  Francis  could  refuse  him  nothing,  and  was  entirely 
guided  by  his  wishes.^ 

Four  months  having  fled  rapidly  away  while  James  was  pass- 
ing his  time  in  this  agreeable  idlesse  with  his  wedded  lady  love, 
the  Scotch  began  to  clamor  for  the  return  of  their  truant  King, 
being  also  not  a  little  impatient  to  see  his  bride. 

Francis  I.  was  very  loth  to  part  with  his  daughter,  and  no  less 
reluctant  to  lose  the  pleasant  companionship  of  his  accomplished 
son-in-law  ;  but  as  the  separation  was  inevitable,  he  endowed 
them  both  with  parting  gifts  of  unexampled  munificence.'^  To 
King  James  he  presented  two  noble  vessels  of  war,  which  he  had 
had  built  and  fitted  out,  victualed,  and  furnished  with  cannons, 
culverins,  cross-bows,  and  other  weapons,  for  the  purpose  of  con- 
veying him  and  Glueen  Magdalene  to  the  shores  of  Scotland. 
One  of  these  ships  was  named  the  Salamander,  that  being  the 
cognizance  or  emblem  which  Francis  had  chosen  for  himself  on 
his  entrance  into  public  life  ;  the  other  the  Morischer,  a  name 
not  quite  so  easy  to  explain.  The  King  of  Scotland  had  two  of 
his  own  in  waiting  at  the  New  Haven,  near  Dieppe,  "  the  ane  of 
them,"  says  Lindsay,  "  was  called  the  Marrivillibe  (query,  Mary 
Willoughby),  and  the  other  callit  the  Great  Lyon,  quhilk  were 
the  principal  ships  that  brought  the  King  and  Q,ueen  through  the 
sea.  After  this  the  King  of  France  caused  his  maister  stabler 
(master  of  the  horse)  pass  to  his  curie  (his  stud)  where  his  great 
horse(s)  were,  and  waill  (chose  out)  twenty  of  the  best  of  them, 
and  bairded  them  with  harness,  and  presented  them  to  the  King 
of  Scotland." 

Here  the  admirers  of  Sir  Walter  Scott's  poetry  will  be  re- 
minded of  the  lamentation  of  the  royal  hero  of  the  Lady  of  the 

^  Encyclopasdia  Britannica,  Hist.  Scotland. 
^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Lesley.     Balfour. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  287 

Lake,   James  Fitz-James,  over  the  dead   body  of  Ms  French 
hunter  in  the  Trosach  glen, — 

"  I  little  thought  when  first  thy  rein 
I  shickened  on  the  banks  of  Seine, 
That  Highland  eagles  e'er  should  feed 
On  thy  fleet  limbs,  ray  matchless  steed." 

Besides  this  goodly  gift  of  clioice  horses  from  the  royal  ecurie 
of  Paris,  we  are  told  that  the  King  of  France  '■'■  gart  his  master 
of  the  armory  gang  to  his  guard-house  and  choose  twenty  stands 
of  harness  that  were  double  overgilt  and  enameled,  and  gave 
them  to  his  son,  the  King  of  Scotland.  Then  he  called  upon  his 
daughter  Magdalene,  the  Glueen  of  Scotland,  and  caused  her 
pass  to  his  wardrobe  with  her  gentlewomen  and  ladies,  and  take 
her  stickis  (measures)  of  claith  of  gold,  velvet,  and  satins,  damask, 
taffitis,  and  other  silks,  as  many  as  she  pleased,  to  make  abulzie- 
ments  to  clothe  her  and  her  Maries.'"^  This  poetic  designation 
for  the  maids  of  honor  was  thus,  w^e  find,  in  use  nearly  ten  years 
before  its  application,  exclusively,  to  the  four  youthful  attendants 
and  namesakes  of  Mary  Glueen  of  Scots. 

The  royal  sire  of  Magdalene  also  gave  her  full  liberty  to  select, 
from  his  regal  storehouse  of  costly  wares,  "  whatsoever  she  listed 
of  tapestry  hangings,  and  palls  of  gold  and  silk,  or  any  other 
precious  thing  he  had  in  his  wardrobe."  The  vivacity  of  the 
French  ladies  on  this  agreeable  occasion,  and  their  activity  in 
selecting  to  the  best  advantage,  caused  no  doubt  a  very  animated 
scene — a  scene  that  would  furnish  a  charming  subject  for  a 
painter.  The  responsibility  of  a  historical  biographer  restrains 
me  from  filling  up  the  outlines  with  a  lively  description  of  the 
consternation  and  expressive  shrugs  of  disapproval  with  which 
those  male  dragons,  the  official  guardians  of  this  goodly  gear, 
witnessed  the  extent  to  which  the  royal  bride  and  her  Maries 
availed  themselves  of  the  agreeable  permission  to  help  themselves 
to  all  they  liked.  To  give  our  fair  readers  some  idea  of  the  val- 
uables chosen  by  Glueen  Magdalene,  we  need  only  enumerate  the 
following  items  : — 

"  Four  suits  of  rich  arras  hangings,  of  eight  pieces — a  suit  wrought  with 
gold  and  silk. 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie's  Chronicle,  James  V.  These  extracts  are  collected 
from  separate  editions  and  the  MSS.  in  the  College  at  Edinburgh. 


288  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Four  suits  of  hangings  of  cloth-of-gold — silver  impaled  with  velvet. 

Eight  suits  of  coarser  arras,  yet  very  good. 

Item,  three  cloths  of  State  (canopies),  Merr_y  rich,  and  of  excellent  worlds. 

Three  rich  beds,  with  all  their  furniture  of  silk  and  gold. 

A  large  cupboard  of  plate,  all  over-gilt,  and  curiously  wrought. 

Ane  other  cupboard  of  plate,  ungilded. 

These  cupboards  of  plate  esteemed  to  100,000  crowns. 

Sixteen  rich  table-cloths  of  all  sorts. 

Twenty  Persian  carpets,  fair  and  large."  ^ 

As  to  Magdalene's  dresses,  they  were  rich  and  numerous  beyond 
precedent ;  and  besides  all  these,  her  father  gave  her  "  great 
gifts  in  jewellery,  chains,  rings,  tablets,  and  all  kinds  of  precious 
stones  that  were,  or  might  be,  gotten  for  gold  or  silver.  Such 
substance  was  never  seen  in  Scotland  as  this  young  dueen 
brought  in  it ;  for  there  was  never  the  like  in  no  man's  time  in 
Scotland."' 

According  to  Balfour,  Magdalene's  "  tocher''  or  wedding  por- 
tion was  paid  by  her  royal  father  to  King  James  in  ready  money  ;^ 
but  Francis,  however  willing  to  do  so,  having  been  embarrassed 
during  the  greater  part  of  his  reign  with  expensive  wars,  and 
crippled  with  the  payment  of  his  enormous  ransom,  was  not  able 
to  disburse  the  whole  sum  at  once.  He  had  handed  over  to 
James's  agents,  in  January,  1536,  twenty  thousand  gold  crowns 
of  the  Sun,  as  the  first  installment  of  the  portion  he  had  agreed 
to  give  him  with  his  adopted  daughter,  Mademoiselle  de  Ven- 
dome  ;  ■*  and  that  sum  was,  of  course,  now  reckoned  as  a  part  of 
Magdalene's  dower,  and  deducted  from  the  tocher  James  was  to 
receive  with  her.  For  the  residue,  Francis  surrendered  some  of 
his  personal  demesnes  in  mortgage  to  the  royal  bridegroom,  which 
is  certified  by  a  document  in  the  French  archives,  entitled — 
"  Yerification,  by  the  Chamber  of  Accounts  of  Paris,  of  the  ces- 
sion of  the  county  of  Gienfaite  to  James  V.,  King  of  Scotland,  by 
Francis  I.,  to  complete  the  payment  of  100,000  crowns  promised 
to  the  said  King  of  Scotland  in  his  contract  of  marriage  with 
Madame  Madalaine  de  France,  eldest  daughter  of  the  King. 
The  said  contract  was  executed  at  Blois  the  26th  November, 
1536.     Dated  April,  1537,  before  Easter."' 

^  Balfour's  Annals  of  Scotland,  vol.  i.  p.  266-7. 

^  Annals  of  Scotland.  '  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 

*  MS.  Archives  du  Royaume  de  France,  Tr.  des  Ch.  ii.  679,  No.  50. 

*  Tr.  des  Ch.  J.  679,  No.  52.     In  the  Hotel  de  Soubise,  Paris. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  289 

The  scarcity  of  money  in  the  French  Exchequer,  at  this  period, 
is  also  evidenced  by  a  letter  from  Duplesys  to  the  Chancellor  of 
France,  informing  him  "  that  he  had  wished  to  raise  the  sum  of 
two  thousand  livres  in  the  city  of  Rouen,  to  be  employed  in  pay- 
ing the  expenses  of  the  King  and  Glueen  of  Scotland,  and  Ma- 
dame Marguerite  (Magdalene's  young  sister),  but  that  he  had  not 
yet  received  it."  ^ 

The  expenses  of  King  James,  both  during  his  courtship  and 
after  his  marriage  with  Magdalene,  were  defrayed  by  his  royal 
father-in-law.  From  the  13th  October  to  the  end  of  January, 
they  amounted  to  fourteen  thousand  six  hundred  and  five  livres 
and  ten  sous.^ 

When  all  the  bridal  fttes  and  triumphs  were  ended,  and  the 
cold  winter  passed,  the  King  of  Scotland  took  leave  of  the  King 
and  dueen  of  France,  and  their  court;  "so  also,"  says  Lindsay 
of  Pitscottie,  "  did  the  (dueen  Magdalene,  and  her  ladies,  and  all 
the  rest  of  his  nobility,  with  great  drinking  on  every  side."  It 
is  to  be  hoped,  notwithstanding  this  sweeping  assertion,  that  the 
Glueen  and  her  ladies  were  exceptions  from  the  general  carouse 
in  which  the  Courts  of  France  and  Scotland  appear  to  have 
drowned  their  parting  sorrows.  Francis  I.  left  his  capital  to  join 
the  army  at  the  same  time  the  King  and  Glueen  of  Scotland 
commenced  their  homeward  journey.  The  brief  joyous  interval 
of  tranquillity,  of  which  the  arrival  of  James  Stuart  was  the 
harbinger,  was  over  ;  and  the  King  of  France  was  compelled  to 
take  the  field  in  person  once  more.  There  is  a  letter  from  that 
Prince  to  his  chancellor,  dated  "  April  9,  after  Easter,  1537," 
written  from  the  camp  at  Hesdin,  directing  him  "  to  give  the 
King  and  Q,ueen  of  Scotland  security  on  some  other  lands  be- 
sides those  of  the  province  of  Maine,  for  the  payment  of  the  rest 
of  the  dower  of  the  said  Queen."  ^  There  is  also  an  order  from 
Francis  to  his  chancellor,  desiring  him  "  to  pay  to  his  daughter, 
the  Glueen  of  Scotland,  the  first  quarter  of  her  pension  of  thirty 
thousand  livres,  that  she  might  be  able,  according  to  her  desire, 
to  provide  herself  before  her  embarkation  with  many  things  that 
were  needful."  * 

At  Rouen,  James  and  Magdalene  were  received  with  great 

1  Tr.  des  Ch.  J.  965,  I.     In  the  Hotel  de  Soubise,  Paris.  ^  j^j^j 

^  MS.  in  the  Archives  of  the  Kingdom  of  France,  J.  966.     5  Paquet. 
*  Ibid.  J.  967.     2  Paquet. 
VOL.  I. — N 


290  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

triumph  and  rejoicings.  They  spent  several  days  in  that  city, 
and  there  King  James  executed  a  formal  deed,  revoking  all  the 
acts  done  in  his  minority,  that  were  either  against  his  conscience, 
or  to  the  prejudice  of  the  crown  of  Scotland.^ 

From  Rouen  the  royal  pair  went  down  the  Seine,  as  far  as 
they  could,  on  their  way  to  Newhaven,  near  Dieppe.  Magda- 
lene wrote  from  Montvilliers  to  the  Chancellor,  Du  Prat,  to 
request  his  influence  in  behalf  of  Jehan  de  St.  Aubin,  her 
maitre-cVliotel,  and  Charles  de  Marconnay,  her  equerry,  who 
were  going  with  her  to  Scotland,  and  had  left  a  suit-at-law, 
which  concerned  both,  undecided.  Her  letter  is  dated  May  7th. ^ 
The  same  day  there  is  an  entry  made  in  the  royal  Compotus  of 
moneys  paid  for  thirty-three  ells  of  yellow  satin  of  Bruges  ;  and 
also  for  red  satin  for  the  uniform  of  the  Q,ueen's  French  band — 
consisting  of  "  four  trumpeters,  four  tambo^irners  (drummers), 
and  three  quhislers''  (fifers),  who  had  attended  her  from  Paris, 
and  were  to  sail  in  the  same  ship  with  their  royal  mistress. 

James  and  Magdalene  were  detained  two  or  three  days  at 
Dieppe  by  unfavorable  weather.  At  last  they  got  a  fair  wind, 
"  pulled  up  sails,  and  came  swiftly  through  the  seas,"  says  Lind- 
say of  Pitscottie  ;  but  according  to  the  reports  of  the  English 
authorities,  who  were  on  the  lookout,  in  the  hope  that  adverse 
winds  and  waves  would  drive  so  rich  a  prize  on  their  shores,  the 
weather  was  stormy,  and  the  passage  long  and  dangerous.  Not 
having  a  safe-conduct  from  Henry,  with  permission  to  land,  James 
and  his  young  Glueen,  whose  situation  required  his  most  tender 
care,  had  to  navigate  the  whole  of  our  stormy  north-east  coast. 

The  Duke  of  Norfolk  came  from  the  castle  of  Sheriffe-Hutton 
to  Scarborough,  anticipating  the  pleasure  of  playing  the  wrecker 
on  the  occasion  ;  for  the  winds  were  rough  and  adverse,  and  the 
ship  containing  James  and  his  bride  was  seen  tossing  off  Scar- 
borough Head,  within  half-a-mile  of  which  it  was  finally  forced 
to  anchor  at  six  in  the  evening.^ 

"If  God  had  sent  such  good  fortune,"  wrote  Norfolk,  "that 
the  King  of  Scots  had  landed  in  these  parts,  I  would  so  honestly 
have  handled  him  that  he  and  his  bride  should  have  drunk  my 
wine  at  Sheriffe-Hutton,  before  he  had  returned  to  Scotland.     I 

^  Lesley's  History  of  Scotland. 

^  Archives  of  the  Kingdom  of  France. 

^  Norfolk  to  Cromwell,  dated  Bridlington,  May  18,  \hZ*l.     State  Papers. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  291 

was  in  some  hope  of  this,  for  the  wind  was  very  strainable  on 
Wednesday  morning."  ^ 

James  and  Magdalene  remained  in  the  storm  all  night  at  that 
imeasy  anchorage  off  Scarborough.  Many  fisher-boats  carried 
out  the  inhabitants  of  the  Yorkshire  coast  to  see  the  King. 
James  conversed  readily  with  them ;  to  one  English  gentleman 
he  said — "  Ye  English  would  have  hindered  my  return,  or  I  had 
been  home  forty  days  ere  this.  But  now  I  am  here,  and  will  be 
shortly  at  home,  whosoever  sayeth  nay."^ 

A  fierce  inquiry  was  made  by  Henry  VIII. 's  council,  regarding 
some  individuals  who  went  down  on  their  knees  to  James  V., 
entreating  him  to  come  into  England,  and  deliver  them  from  the 
tyranny  they  endured.^ 

The  royal  voyagers  made  the  port  of  Leith,*  Saturday,  May  19, 
being  the  fifth  day  from  their  embarkation,  and  Whitsun-eve. 
They  landed  at  the  pier  amid  the  acclamations  of  a  mixed  mul- 
titude of  loving  lieges  of  all  degrees,  who  came  to  welcome 
their  sovereign  home,  and  to  see  their  new  Q,ueen.^  Magdalene 
endeared  herself  forever  to  the  affections  of  the  people  by  the 
sensibility  she  manifested  on  that  occasion ;  for  when  "  she  first 
stepped  on  Scottish  ground  she  knelt,  and,  bowing  herself  down, 
kissed  the  molds  thereof  for  the  love  she  bore  the  King,  returned 
thanks  to  God  for  having  brought  the  King  and  her  safely  through 
the  seas,  and  prayed  for  the  happiness  of  the  country."  ®  This 
was  indeed  entering  upon  the  high  vocation,  not  like  the  cold 
state  puppet  of  a  public  pageant,  but  in  the  spirit  of  a  queen 
who  felt  and  understood  the  relation  in  which  she  stood  both  to 
the  King  and  people  of  that  realm.  A  touching  sight  it  must 
have  been  to  those  who  saw  that  young  royal  bride  thus  obey  the 
warm  impulse  of  a  heart  overflowing  with  gratitude  to  God,  and 
love  to  all  she  then  looked  upon. 

The  venerable  Sir  David  Lindsay  of  the  Mount,  and  other 
cotemporary  poets,  who  were  so  soon  to  hang  elegiac  wreaths  of 
mournful  verse  on  the  early  bier  of  her  who  then  stood  among 
them  in  her  fragile  and  almost  unearthly  loveliness,  radiant  with 

1  Norfolk  to  Cromwell,  dated  Bridlington,  May  18,  1537.      State  Papers. 
^  Miscellaneous  Letters  in  the  Chapter  House,  vol.  viii.  f.  67.  ^  Ibid- 

*  Clifford  to  Henry  VIII.     State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  879. 
"  Lesley.  ^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 


292  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

hope,  and  joy,  and  happy  love,  called  her  "  the  pleasant  Magda- 
lene," and  "  the  sweet  Flower  of  France." 

King  James  blithely  conducted  his  Q,ueen  to  his  palace  of 
Holy  rood  ;  ^  and,  to  increase  the  universal  satisfaction  which  her 
appearance  and  manners  had  given,  the  auspicious  news  quickly 
spread  through  Edinburgh  that  she  was  likely  to  bring  an  heir 
to  Scotland.  Great  were  the  rejoicings  in  consequence.^  The 
ancient  prediction  "  that  the  French  wife  should  bring  a  child 
the  ninth  in  degree  from  the  left  side  of  the  stem  of  Bruce,  that 
should  rule  England  and  Scotland  from  sea  to  sea,"  was  revived 
in  anticipation  of  the  offspring  of  James  V.  of  Scotland  by  Mag- 
dalene of  France,  although  it  would  only  have  been  the  eighth 
in  descent  from  that  illustrious  stock. ^ 

Magdalene  was  chaperoned  from  France  by  her  governess, 
Madame  de  Montrieul,  a  French  matron  of  the  highest  rank  and 
most  approved  discretion,  and  attended  by  eight  other  ladies. 
She  was  also  accompanied  by  a  French  prelate,  the  Bishop  of 
Limoges,  who,  in  a  letter  dated  May  25,  communicates  to  her 
royal  father's  chancellor  the  news  of  the  happy  arrival  of  the 
King  and  Glueen  of  Scotland  in  their  own  realm.  He  states, 
with  great  satisfaction,  "  that  their  Majesties  were  received  by  a 
splendid  assemblage  of  the  nobles  of  that  country*  at  their  com- 
ing into  port."  That  Magdalene's  health  at  this  juncture,  though 
amending,  was  still  in  a  precarious  state,  may  be  gathered  from 
a  sentence  in  this  letter,  in  which  the  prelate  says,  "  they  have 
hopes  of  the  cure  of  this  Princess,  thanks  to  the  care  of  her  old 
doctor,  Maitre  Patrix."  This  amendment  was  but  a  flattering 
rally,  produced  by  the  brief  victory  of  mind  over  matter,  the 
struggle  of  youth  and  happiness  for  life — vain  struggle  to  over- 
come organic  disease,  and  ward  oft'  the  dart  of  death  by  an  en- 
ergetic determination  of  the  human  will  not  to  be  ill,  and  not 
to  die. 

Preparations  for  the  public  entrance,  and  the  coronation  of  the 
young  Glueen,  were  commenced  with  great  activity,  and  on  a 
scale  of  magnificence  much  grander  than  had  ever  been  witnessed 
in  Scotland  ;  King  James  being  eager  both  to  gratify  his  taste 

1  Lesley. 

^  Ray's  Dispatches  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk.     State  Papers. 

^  Discussion  in  Lord  Hailes's  Annals  of  Scotland. 

*  MS.  Hotel  de  Soubise,  J.  967.     Third  Paquet. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  293 

for  pageantry,  and  to  do  honor  to  his  lovely  and  beloved  consort, 
of  whom  he  was  no  less  proud  than  fond. 

Sir  David  Lindsay  of  the  Mount,  in  his  poetic  expostulation 
with  Death,  reproaches  him  with  having  spoiled  all  the  splendid 
processions  and  sports  that  were  to  have  taken  place  on  this  great 
occasion.  Considering  that  the  arrangements  were  made  under 
the  direction  of  that  venerable  bard,  in  his  official  capacity  as 
Lord  Lion  King-of-Arms,  his  rehearsal  of  them,  however  rugged 
the  verse  may  be,  is  valuable  as  a  piece  of  authentic  costume. 
He  says, — 

"Thou  might'st  have  seen  the  preparation 
Made  by  the  three  estates  of  Scotland, 
With  great  comfort  and  consolation 
In  every  city,  castle,  tower,  and  town  ; 
And  how  each  noble  set  his  whole  intent 
~     To  be  excellent  in  abulliment} 

Thief !  sawest  thou  not  the  great  preparation 
Of  Edinburgh,  that  noble  famous  town  ? 
Thou  saw'st  the  people  laboring  for  their  lives 
To  make  triumph,  with  trump  and  clarion. 
Such  pleasure  ne'er  was  seen  in  this  region 
As  should  have  been  the  day  of  her  entress, 
With  great  propines^  given  imto  her  Grace. 
Thou  sawest  making  right  costly  scaffolding, 
Depainted  well  with  gold  and  azure  fine,' 
Ready  prepared  for  the  upsetting  ;* 
With  fountains  flowing  water  clear,  and  wine. 
Disguised  folk  like  creatures  divine. 
On  each  scaffold  to  play  a  sundry  story. 
Thou  sawest  many  a  lusty  fresh  gallant. 
Well-ordered  for  receiving  of  their  Queen  ; 
Each  craftsman  with  his  bent  bow  in  his  hand 
Right  gallantly,  in  short  clothing  of  green. 
The  honest  burgess  clad  thou  shouldst  have  seen, 
Some  in  scarlet  and  some  in  cloth  of  green. 
For  to  have  met  their  lady  sovereign." 

The  Lord  Lion,  after  reciting  the  order  of  the  procession  of 
the  Provost,  Bailies,  the  Lords  of  Session  clad  in  purple,  and 
the  great  Lords  of  Parliament,  Barons,  &c.,  clad  in  silk  and  gold, 
and  the  Lords  Spiritual — 

^  Habiliment.  ^  Namely,  presents  to  propitiate  her. 

^  The  royal  colors  of  France,  in  honor  of  Magdalene's  paternal  bearings. 
*  Being  set  up. 


294  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

"  Then  next  in  order,  passing  throw  the  town, 
Thou  shouldst  have  heard  the  din  of  instruments, 
Of  tabrone,  trumpet,  shalm,  and  clarion, 
"With  roar  rebounding  through  the  elements." 

Then,  last  of  all,  attended  by  all  the  lovely  ladies  of  Scotland, 
was  to  have  come  the  dueen  with  great  triumph,  of  whose  dress 
and  reception  Sir  David  thus  speaks  : — 

"  Her  raiment  to  rehearse  I  am  not  able, 
Of  gold,  and  pearl,  and  precious  stones  bright, 
Ttvifikling  like  stars  into  a.  frosty  night. 
Under  a  pall  of  gold  she  should  have  past, 
By  burgesses  borne,  clothed  in  silks  fine. 
The  Great  Master  of  the  Household  at  the  last ; 
With  him,  in  order,  all  the  King's  train. 
Whose  ornaments  were  longsome  to  define. 
On  this  manner  she  passing  through  the  town, 
Should  have  received  many  benison 
Of  virgins  and  of  lusty  burgess'  wives, 
Which  should  have  been  a  sight  celestial, 
Vive  la  Royne,  crying  for  their  lives. 
With  an  harmonious  sound  angelical. 
Thou  shouldst  have  heard  the  ornate  orators 
Making  her  Highness's  salutation. 
Both  of  the  clergy,  town  and  counsellors, 
With  many  a  notable  narration  ; 
Thou  shouldst  have  seen  her  coronation 
In  the  fixir  Abbay  of  the  Holy  Rood, 
In  presence  of  a  mirthful  multitude  ; 
Sic  banqueting,  sic  awful  tournaments 
On  horse  and  foot,  that  time  which  should  have  been, 
Sic  chapel-royal,  with  sic  instruments 
Of  crafty  music." 

None  of  these  grand  arrangements  were  ever  destined  to  take 
place  ;  at  least,  not  in  honor  of  her  for  whom  the  preparations 
were  commenced. 

The  ample  supply  of  rich  array  and  gems  which  Glueen  Mag- 
dalene had  drawn  from  her  father's  wardrobe  and  jewel-house 
had  not  satisfied  all  her  desires  in  regard  to  her  toilet.  She  had 
left  a  robe  in  France  under  the  hands  of  the  modiste,  possibly 
the  one  she  was  to  wear  at  her  ensuing  coronation.  That  her 
royal  sire  was  to  be  at  the  expense  of  its  making  and  garniture 
may  be  gathered  from  the  following  epistle,  penned,  it  may  be 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  295 

presumed,  directly  after  her  arrival  in  Scotland.  The  paternos- 
ters she  mentions  are  the  large  beads  in  rosaries.  She  thinks  it 
necessary  to  make  interest  with  the  Grand-master  of  the  royal 
household  of  France,  whom  she  addresses  as  '■'•  mon  cousin,""  to 
keep  her  father  in  the  mind  to  fulfill  his  promises  of  presents  of 
pearls  and  fur  for  her  new  robe,  and  that  these  should  be  of  the 
best  quality. 

Magdalene,  Queex  of  Scotland,  to  her  Cousin  (the  G-rand  Master   of 
THE  Household  of  France).! 

"  Mon  Cousin — Tell  the  King,  I  entreat  you,  that  I  connmend  myself  very 
humbly  to  his  good  grace,  and  beg  him  to  have  me  ever  in  remembrance ; 
and  remind  him  of  the  pearls  he  promised  me.  Send  me  also  the  pater- 
nosters to  accompany  my  robe,  for  it  has  none.  You  have  hitherto  stood 
my  good  friend  with  the  King,  and  I  entreat  you  ever  to  continue  so,  and  I 
will  be  always  your  good  coicslne, 

"  Magdalene. 

"  P.  S. — I  pray  you  to  let  the  martin  with  which  my  robe  is  to  be  furred 
be  beautiful." 

As  Magdalene  makes  no  complaint  of  indisposition  in  this 
letter,  we  may  suppose  that  it  was  written  during  the  delusive 
interval  of  convalescence  which  she  enjoyed  at  her  first  arrival; 

After  the  first  pleasurable  excitement,  caused  by  the  flattering 
nature  of  her  reception  in  Scotland,  was  over,  the  young  Q^ueen. 
began  to  flag.  She  could  not  conceal,  either  from  herself  or 
others,  that  she  was  ill  at  ease.  The  spring  was  cold  and  un- 
genial,  and  Edinburgh  is  about  the  worst  place,  on  account  of 
the  prevalence  of  east  wind  and  fogs  in  such  seasons,  to  which  a 
delicate  invalid,  with  a  hereditary  tendency  to  consumption, 
could  be  brought  from  a  milder  climate.  Neither  of  the  palaces 
there  were  desirable  residences  for  her  ;  Holyrood  was  as  much 
too  damp  and  low  as  the  Castle,  on  its  lofty  rock,  was  high  and 
bleak.  King  James  saw  the  expediency  of  removing  her  with- 
out delay.  Being  very  anxious  about  her,  he  made  his  physicians 
hold  a  consultation,  in  order  to  select  the  most  salubrious  place 
in  his  dominions  for  her  particular  case.  We  should  have 
thought  they  would  have  recommended  the  soft  air  of  Rothesay, 
or  the  vale  of  Glasgow ;  but  they  decided  on  a  bracing  tempera- 

^  Lettres  des  Rois,  Reines,  et  autres  Persomiages  des  Cours  de  France  et 
de  I'Angleterre.     Edited  by  M.  Brequing,  p.  66. 


296  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

ture,  as  appears  by  the  following  quaint  notice  in  Martin's  His- 
tory of  the  See  of  St.  Andreivs  ;' — "  Magdalene,  Glueen  of  James 
v.,  being  a  tender  lady,  the  physicians  choosed  this  place  (St. 
Andrews),  and  the  abbacie  of  Balmerinoch,  as  having  the  best 
airs  of  any  places  in  the  kingdom  for  her  residence  and  abode." 

To  Balmerino,  therefore,  or  the  sailor's  town,  as  its  Celtic 
name  signifies,  a  picturesque  village  on  the  Firth  of  Tay,  dueen 
Magdalene  was  removed.  She  was  lodged  in  the  beautiful 
abbey  which  had  been  founded  by  hei;  royal  predecessor,  Uueen 
Ermengarde,  the  consort  of  William  the  Lion,  out  of  gratitude 
for  her  restoration  to  health,  in  consequence  of  a  temporary  resi- 
dence on  that  spot.  The  beautiful  ruins  of  the  abbey  are  still  to 
be  seen,  situated  on  a  gentle  eminence  above  the  bold  rocky 
shores  of  the  river  Tay.  Magdalene  derived  immediate  benefit 
from  the  change  of  air  ;  and  perhaps,  if  she  could  have  been 
content  to  remain  quietly  there  for  a  few  weeks  or  months, 
equally  good  effects  might  have  resulted  to  her  as  had  formerly 
been  the  case  with  (dueen  Ermengarde.  But  as  King  James 
could  not  be  with  her  in  this  monastic  house,  her  desire  of  his 
society  induced  her  to  return  to  Holyrood,  where  she  could  enjoy 
his  company. 

On  the  appearance  of  unfavorable  symptoms,  previous  to  her 
leaving  Edinburgh,  James  had  written  to  her  royal  sire,  entreat- 
ing him  to  send  a  very  celebrated  physician  in  his  service,  called 
Monsieur  Francisco,  to  her  assistance,  as  the  skill  of  Master 
Patrix  had  ceased  to  alleviate  her  sufferings.  Master  Francisco 
was  probably  a  Jew,  for  Francis  I.  had  no  faith  in  medical 
professors  of  any  other  persuasion.  As  an  instance  of  his  super- 
stitious feelings  in  this  respect,  we  are  told  that,  when  he  was 
dangerously  ill  at  Compiegne,  he  solicited  the  Emperor,  Charles 
v.,  to  send  a  celebrated  Jewish  physician  from.  Spain  to  his 
assistance.  The  physician,  on  his  arrival,  avowed  himself  to  be 
a  Christian  convert,  to  the  great  disappointment  of  the  royal 
patient,  who  sent  forthwith  in  haste  to  Constantinople  for  an 
unbaptized  practitioner  of  the  healing  art,  an  Israelite  by  creed 
as  well  as  descent;  declaring,  "that  no  one  but  a  genuine  Jew 
could  effect  his  cure."^     The  Christian  physicians  were,  of  course, 

^  Lettres  des  Rois,  Reines,  et  autres  Personnages  des  Cours  de  France  et 
de  I'Angleterre.     Edited  by  M.  Brequing,  p.  191. 
"^  Gaillard,  vol.  i.  book  viii.  c.  3. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  297 

desirous  of  ascertaining  by  what  occult  secret  the  unbeUeving 
brother  succeeded  in  restoring  the  King  to  health.  It  was,  how- 
ever, simply  a  recommendation  to  the  King  to  drink  asses'  milk. 
An  original  holograph  letter  from  Magdalene  to  her  royal 
father  is  preserved  in  the  Imperial  library  at  St.  Petersburg, 
from  which  it  appears  that  she  was  so  much  amended  in  health, 
since  her  auxious  consort  had  sent  for  the  said  Monsieur  Fran- 
cisco, as  to  consider  his  arrival  a  matter  of  indifference.  She 
writes  according  to  the  custom  of  the  period,  in  the  same  formal 
and  deferential  style  as  that  in  which  her  cotemporaries,  Mary 
and  Elizabeth  of  England,  address  their  unpaternal  sire,  Henry 
VIII. 

Letter  of  Queen  Magdalene  to  her  Father,  the  King  of   France,^ 

Sir — Since  the  King  of  Scotland  requested  you  to  send  Master  Francisco, 
the  physician,  there  is  a  great  amendment,  thanks  to  God ;  for  all  my  suffer- 
ings are  abated :  so  that  if  he  (Francisco)  come  now,  he  can  only  be  allowed 
to  contribute  to  my  perfect  cure,  and  that  principally,  sir,  by  the  good 
news  which  I  hope  he  will  bring  me  of  you.  If  you  wish  to  be  more 
fully  informed  of  my  proceedings,  it  can  be  through  Monsieur  de  Limoges, 
according  as  you  are  pleased  to  require.  He  has  been  my  very  good 
director  up  to  the  present  moment,  doing  all  the  service  he  can  for  me." 

Here  an  hiatus  occurs — some  words  which,  from  the  context, 
appear  intended  to  give  her  royal  parent  a  hint  of  her  situation, 
having  been  obliterated.     She  concludes  thus  : — 

"  I  entreat  you,  sir,  very  humbly  to  take  this  service  agreeably,  and  to 
be  pleased  to  have  it  in  good  remembrance ;  beseeching  you  also  to  have 
me  in  your  good  favor,  to  which,  as  humbly  as  I  can,  I  commend  myself. 
"  Sir,  I  pray  God  to  give  you  a  very  prosperous  and  long  hfe, 
"  Written  at  Edinburgh,  the  8  th  day  of  June. 

"  Your  very  humble,  and  very  obedient  daughter, 

"Magdalene  de  France." 
Superscribed — "  Au  Roi." 

It  is  somewhat  remarkable  that  Magdalene  should  not  have 
adopted  the  regal  signature  of  Magdalene  U.,  to  which,  as  dueen 
of  Scotland,  she  was  entitled,  instead  of  continuing  to  subscribe 
herself  by  her  maiden  style  as  a  princess  of  France.  This  might, 
perhaps,  be  from  inadvertence,  and  the  force  of  habit. 

^  Communicated,  by  gracious  permission,  by  Mr.  Atkinson,  librarian  to 
his  Imperial  Majesty  the  Emperor  of  Russia. 


298  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Much  to  be  regretted  it  is  that  Magdalene  did  not  tell  her  own 
news,  instead  of  referring  her  royal  father  to  her  cautious  moni- 
tor, the  Bishop  of  Limoges,  for  all  particulars.  These,  of  course, 
are  forever  buried  in  the  graves  of  that  prelate  and  his  sovereign, 
Francis  of  Yalois.  Every  thing  regarding  the  brief  reign  of  this 
fair  daughter  of  the  Fleur-de-lys  in  Scotland,  that  appears  on  the 
surface  of  history,  is  cloudless  sunshine  ;  but  was  it  really  so  ? 
James  V.  had  formed  illicit  ties  in  early  life,  that  were  destined 
to  have  a  baleful  influence  on  his  guiltless  posterity  ;  and  it  is 
scarcely  possible  that  no  roots  of  bitterness  sprang  up  from  these 
to  alloy  the  cup  of  wedded  love,  and,  by  troubling  the  peace  of 
his  royal  bride,  to  inflict  some  punishment  on  himself 

He  had  given  his  illegitimate  son  by  the  Lady  Douglas  of 
Lochleven  the  name  of  James  Stuart,  and  treated  him  with  almost 
the  same  distinction  as  if  he  had  been  the  Prince  Stuart  of  Scot- 
land. The  Exchequer  records  certify  the  fact  of  the  royal  array 
in  which  this  youth  was  attired,  and  that  a  chair  and  canopy  of 
state  were  provided  for  his  use.^  The  like  distinctions  were  also 
allowed  by  James  to  his  illegitimate  daughter,  who  is  styled  in 
these  accounts  "the  Lady  Jane  ;"  and  he  had  other  children  of 
the  same  class.  That  such  connections  were  agreeable  to  the 
Clueen  can  not  be  supposed  ;  on  the  contrary,  they  could  scarcely 
fail  of  being  objects  of  jealous  uneasiness  to  her  whose  love  for 
her  royal  husband  was  of  so  passionate  a  nature  as  to  render  her 
reckless  of  her  own  life. 

The  particulars  which  Brantome  records  of  this  lady  are  too 
curious  to  be  omitted.  After  dwelling  on  the  early  promise  and 
premature  deaths  of  her  two  elder  sisters,  he  says, — "  The  Prin- 
cess Magdalene  married  the  King  of  Scotland,  from  which  destiny 
her  friends  had  vainly  tried  to  turn  her.  '  JSTot,  certes,'  said  they, 
'  but  he  is  a  prince  both  brave  and  beautiful ;  but  then  to  have 
to  go  and  live  in  such  a  barbarous  country,  and  among  a  rude 
people !' " 

"'Nevertheless,'  replied  Magdalene,  'while  I  live  I  shall  be  a 

1  Compotus  of  Kirkaldy  of  Grange.—"  Moneys  expended  on  Lord  James, 
now  Prior  of  St.  Andrews,  and  the  Lady  Jane,  his  sister.  Part  of  these 
were  for  making  aue  cayiahe  to  the  Lady  Jane,  with  nine  ells  of  yellow, 
nine  ells  of  green,  and  nine  ells  of  red  serge."  The  French  call  a  sofa 
canape;  but  this  article  of  furniture  must  not  be  thus  considered,  since 
charges  occur  for  a  knob  to  the  head  of  the  said  cannahe. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  299 

queen,  which  has  always  been  my  wish.'  "  Her  real- words  were 
probably  Ibis  queen.  Or  the  passage  may  bear'  the  interpreta- 
tion, "  However  short  my  life  may  be,  as  long  as  it  lasts  I  shall 
be  his  queen,  which  has  always  been  my  desire." 

"  When  the  Princess  Magdalene  was  Q.ueen  in  Scotland," 
pursues  Brantome,  "she  found  the  country  just  as  she  had  been 
previously  told,  and  altogether  different  from  our  douce  France. 
But  Q,ueen  Magdalene  gave  no  sign  of  regret,  unless  in  this  one 
exclamation,  '  Alas  I  I  would  be  a  queen  !'  She  covered  her 
sadness  and  the  fire  of  her  ambition  with  such  ashes  of  patience 
as  she  best  might.  Monsieur  de  Konsard  told  me  this,  and  he 
went  with  her  to  Scotland,  leaving  his  service  as  page  to  the  Duke 
of  Orleans,  who  gave  him  to  her,  and  he  went  to  see  the  world."  ^ 

The  Duke  of  Norfolk  had  learned,  by  his  spies,  that  James  and 
Magdalene  lived  with  such  plainness  that  six  dishes  of  food  suf- 
ficed for  the  royal  table.  Instead  of  appreciating  the  wisdom  of 
a  dietetic  rule  in  Magdalene's  state  of  health,  and  the  real  friendly 
kindness  of  her  espoused  lover  in  sharing  her  invalid  repast,  Nor- 
folk considered  it  was  an  instance  of  miserly  conduct,  and  in- 
sinuated to  his  court  that  James  V.,  with  his  parsimony,  was 
starving  Magdalene  to  death,  and  that  this  simplicity  of  diet 
proceeded  from  no  better  motive  than  sparing  his  meat.  "  He 
doth  keep  so  small  a  house,"  writes  the  Duke  to  Cromwell,  "that 
there  is  but  only  six  messes  of  meat  allowed  at  their  dinner ;  and 
the  Glueen  his  wife  not  like  to  scape  death,  and  that  not  long,  as 
I  am  informed,  by  various  ways." 

It  is  certain  that  Magdalene's  governess,  Madame  de  Mon- 
trieul,  and  the  eight  noble  French  ladies  by  whom  she  was 
attended,  were  malcontent  with  the  style  of  living  at  the  court 
of  Scotland ;  and  from  their  report  it  should  seem  that  they  were 
entertained  v/ith  the  invalid  fare  that  was  prepared  for  their 
royal  mistress,  and  shared  by  the  King.  The  King  secluded 
himself  in  the  sick-chamber  of  his  consort,  so  that  there  was  no 
pastime  or  resort  of  nobles  at  Holyrood,  which  these  French 
ladies  considered  very  dismal. 

"The  dueen,"  said  Madame  Montrieul,  "had  no  good  days 
after  she  came  to  Scotland,  but  was  always  sickly,  with  a  ca- 
tarrh, which  descended  into  her  stomach."^ 

^  Brantome,  Lives  of  the  Princesses  of  France  of  his  times,  p.  302,  303. 
2  Ellis's  Letters,  First  Series,  vol.  li.  p.  108--9. 


300  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

It  has  generally  been  supposed  that  Magdalene  was  in  a 
decline  when  she  married,  and  that  the  apparent  amendment 
which  took  place,  at  the  period  when  she  first  became  personally- 
acquainted  with  James  T.  of  Scotland,  and  continued  for  a  short 
time  after  her  arrival  at  Edinburgh,  was  only  one  of  the  flatter- 
ing fluctuations  symptomatic  of  that  fatal  ma]ady,  and  that  the 
pleasurable  excitement  of  her  mind  lent  a  deceptive  support  to 
her  feeble  constitution. 

Her  letter  to  her  father,  which  must  have  been  written  after 
her  return  from  Balmerino  Abbey,  appears  conclusive  evidence 
that  at  that  period  (June  8),  she  regarded  herself  as  convalescent, 
and  was  looking  forward  with  hopeful  confidence  to  a  perfect  cure. 
She  had  then  been  twenty  days  in  Scotland — in  twenty  days 
more  her  brief  hours  of  life  and  royalty  were  to  be  summed  up 
and  brought  to  a  close.  One  of  the  endemic  catarrhs  of  the 
climate  attacked  her  soon  after,  which  terminated  in  a  burning 
fever.  She  had  no  constitutional  strength  to  struggle  with  an 
illness  so  sharp  and  violent.  The  preceding  rally  was  but  like 
the  ominous  flash  of  the  wasted  taper  before  it  sinks  in  utter 
darkness.  Medical  aid  proved  unavailing ;  and,  to  the  inex- 
pressible grief  of  her  husband  and  the  people  of  Scotland,  Mag- 
dalene expired  on  the  10th  of  July,  forty  days  after  she  landed 
at  Leith  harbor.^ 

Up  to  that  period  the  preparations  had  been  rapidly  progress- 
ing for  her  coronation,  which  was  to  have  been  a  day  of  national 
gladness  and  festivity  throughout  the  realm.  All  the  principal 
towns  in  Scotland  had  provided  pageants  and  popular  demonstra- 
tions of  loyalty,  in  honor  of  their  fair  young  (iueen,  who  had  in 
that  brief  time  rendered  herself  an  object  of  universal  aflection. 
"This  good  lady,"  says  Bishop  Lesley,'^  "through  her  loving 
countenance  and  comely  behavior  at  her  first  arrival,  won  the 
love  and  hearty  good- will  of  all  the  nobles  of  the  realm,  and  the 
people  also,  and  pleased  the  King  so  well  in  all  M^ays,  that  there 
was  never  greater  hope  and  appearance  of  wealth  and  all  kind 
of  prosperity  within  that  realm,  than  did  appear  then.  But  For- 
tune, envying  their  felicity,  would  not  sufier  them  to  bide  long 
together,  and  therefore  caused  Atropos  to  cut  her  thread,  so  that 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Lesley.     Buchanan. 

^  Lesley's  Hist,  of  Scotland— James  Fyft.  Printed  for  the  Bannatyne 
Club. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  '  301 

about  the  montli  of  June  she  was  vexed  with  sickness  of  ane  ve- 
hement fever,  whereof  she  deceased  the  10  th  day  of  July,  and 
was  buried  in  the  Abbey  Kirk  of  Halherudhous,  whereof  the 
King  took  great  displeasure,  and  therefore  keepit  him  quiet  ane 
lang  time  after."  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie  tells  us  "that  all  the 
great  blythness  and  joy  of  her  coming  was  turned  in  great  mourn- 
ing, and  all  the  play  that  should  have  been  made  was  all  turned 
in  soul  masses  and  dirigies  ;  and  such  mourning  through  the 
country,  and  lamentation,  that  it  was  great  pity  for  to  see  ;  and 
also  the  King's  heavy  moan  that  he  made  for  her  was  greater 
than  all  the  rest." 

The  early  death  of  Magdalene  was  not  only  a  misfortune  to  her 
royal  husband,  but  a  serious  loss  to  Scotland,  and  even  to  Chris- 
tendom, on  account  of  the  enlightened  views  she  had  received  on 
the  all-important  subject  of  religion.  Brantome  tells  us  that 
"  she  was  very  deeply  regretted  not  only  by  James  V,  but  by  all 
his  people,  for  she  was  very  good,  and  knew  how  to  make  her- 
self truly  beloved.  She  had  a  great  mind,  and  was  most  wise 
and  virtuous."  ^  The  first  general  mourning  ever  known  in 
Scotland  was  worn  for  her,  and  her  obsequies  were  solemnized 
with  the  greatest  manifestation  of  sorrow  of  which  that  nation 
had  ever  been  participant.^  The  lamentations  for  the  premature 
death  of  this  youthful  Q,ueen,  and  the  hopes  that  perished  with 
her,  of  an  heir  of  Scotland,  appear  to  have  been  of  a  similar  char- 
acter to  the  passionate  and  universal  burst  of  national  sorrow 
which,  in  the  present  century,  pervaded  all  hearts  in  the  Britan- 
nic empire,  for  the  loss  of  the  noble-minded  Princess  Charlotte  of 
Wales  and  her  infant. 

"  How  many  hopes  were  borne  upon  thy  bier, 
0  stricken  bride  of  love  !" — Hemans. 

The  epitaph  of  this  lamented  dueen  w'as  written  by  Bu- 
chanan ^  in  elegant  Latin  verse,  of  which  the  following  is  a  trans- 
lation : — 

1  Vies  des  Femmes  Illustres. 

^  Buchunan,  Hist.  Scotland.     Druramond  of  Hawthornden. 

^  The  following  entry  in  the  Treasurer's  Accounts,  the  21st  day  of 
August,  1537,  "  Item,  to  Master  George  Balquhanan  at  the  Kingis  com- 
mand ...  XX  lib."  certifies  that  tlie  royal  widower*  did  not  omit  to  reward 
the  learned  poet.     Again,  in  July,  1538,  upon  the  occasion  of  the  commemo- 


302  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 


"Magdalene   of  Valois,  Queen    of   Scotland,  died  in  the  xvi  year  of 

HER    AGE. 

"  I  was  a  royal  wife,  from  monarchs  sprung, 
A  sovereign's  daughter,  and  in  hope  to  be 
The  royal  motlier  of  a  regal  line  ; 
But  lest  my  glory  should  exceed  the  height 
Of  mortal  honor,  Death's  invidious  dart 
Hath  laid  me  in  my  morning  freshness  here. 
Nature  and  virtue,  glory,  life,  and  death. 
Strove  to  express  in  me  their  utmost  power. 
Nature  gave  beauty  ;  virtue  made  me  good  ; 
Relentless  death  o'er  life  too  soon  prevailed. 
But  my  fair  fame  shall  flourish  evermore, 
To  compensate  for  that  brief  mortal  span 
By  lasting  meed  of  universal  praise." 

Buchanan  makes  Magdalene  a  year  younger  than  she  really 
was — for,  as  she  was  born  August  20,  1520,  she  would  have 
completed  her  seventeenth  year  if  she  had  survived  till  the  anni- 
versary of  that  day. 

Sir  David  Lindsay  states  her  age  more  correctly  in  The  De- 
floration of  the  Death  of  Queen  Magdalene,  of  which  the 
following  lines  may  serve  as  a  specimen  : — 

"  0  cruel  Death !  too  great  is  thy  puissance, 
Devourer  of  all  earthly  living  things. 
Adam  !  we  may  blame  thee  of  this  mischance, 
In  thy  default  this  cruel  tyrant  reigns  ; 
And  now,  alas  !  hath  reft  forth  of  this  land 
The  Flower  of  France,  and  Comfort  of  Scotland. 

ration  services  on  the  anniversary  of  Queen  Magdalene's  death.  Master 
George  Balquhanan  received  a  gown  of  Paris  black,  lined  with  black  satin, 
&c.,  also  £20  at  the  King's  commands  ;  so  that,  considering  the  relative 
value  of  money  in  that  century,  he  was  much  more  nobly  guerdoned  for 
his  pains  than  he  would  have  found  himself,  belike,  in  the  present  day.  It 
is,  however,  to  be  noted  that  the  said  Master  George  Buchanan  was  a 
covu'tier  at  that  time,  having  been  preferred,  for  his  singular  erudition, 
and,  Knox  adds,  "  his  honest  behavior,"  to  the  place  of  tutor  to  the  King's 
illegitimate  children,  whom  the  great  Reformer  designates  by  a  coarser 
name.  While  engaged  in  this  office,  Buchanan  was  the  recipient  of  gowns, 
hose,  bonnets,  doublets,  and  various  other  gear  from  the  royal  wardrobe- 
stores,  as  early  as  February  16,  1536. — Treasurer's  Accounts  in  the  Royal 
Record  Office  at  Edinburgh,  cited  by  David  Laing,  Esq.  in  his  learned  edi- 
tion of  the  Works  of  John  Knox,  vol.  i.  p.  71. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  303 

Father  Adam,  alas !  that  thou  abusedst 
Thy  free-will,  being  disobedient ; 
Thou  chusedst  Death,  and  lasting  Life  refusedst. 
Thy  succession,  alas  !  that  may  repent 
That  thou  hast  made  to  Death  no  resistance. 
Example  of  our  Queen,  the  Flower  of  France. 
O  dreadful  Dragon,  with  thy  doleful  dart, 
Which  did  not  spare  of  Faeminine  the  Flower, 
But  cruelly  did  pierce  her  through  the  heart, 
And  would  not  give  her  respite  for  an  hour 
To  remain  with  her  Prince  and  Paramour, 
That  she  at  leisure  might  have  tane  licence — 
Scotland  on  thee  may  cry  aloud  vengeance. 
Thou  let  Methusalem  live  nine  hundred  years 
Threescore  and  nine  ;  but  in  thy  furious  rage 
Thou  didst  devour  this  young  Princess,  but  wear 
Ere  she  was  compleat  seventeen  year  of  age." 

Sir  David  concludes  liis  elegiac  poem  with  this  quaint  stanza  :— 

"  0  Death !  though  thou  the  body  may  devour 
Of  every  man,  yet  hast  thou  not  puissance 
Of  their  Vertue  for  to  consume  their  Glore, 
As  shall  be  seen  of  Magdalen  in  France, 
Sometime  our  Queen,  whom  poets  shall  advance, 
And  put  her  in  Imperial  Memory. 
So  shall  her  fame  of  thee  have  victory, 
Though  thou  hast  kill'd  the  heavenly  Flower  of  France, 
Which  impted  '  was  into  the  Thistle  keen. 
Wherein  all  Scotland  saw  their  whole  Pleasance, 
And  made  the  Lion  rejoiced  from  the  spleen. 
Though  the  root  be  pulled  from  the  leaves  green, 
The  smell  of  it  shall,  in  despite  of  thee. 
Keep  ay  two  Reahns  in  Peace  and  AmitieP 

In  a  curious  MS.  in  the  British  Museum,  with  the  name  Robert 
Firmyn,  1585,  at  the  foot  of  the  page  containing  armorial  bear- 
ings of  some  of  the  Kings  of  Scotland  prettily  executed  in  colors, 
there  are  the  following  quaint  verses  under  those  of  James  V.  :— 

"  Kinge  James  the  fiftc,  ye  flower  of  flowers  all, 
That  ever  was  in  Scotland  or  be  shall,^ 
His  honor,  manheid,  and  wisdom  to  advance 
Paste  in  the  Royal  and  noble  realme  of  France, 


Meaning  grafted.  a  Qr  shall  be. 


304  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

Maryit  the  Kingis  eldest  dochter  schene,^ 
Qulia  named  was  ye  pleasant  Magdalene"  ^ 

In  an  old  Scotch  national  protocol  of  the  sixteenth  century, 
containing  various  legal  deeds  of  importance,  some  original  Latin 
verses  were  discovered,^  entitled,  "  Epita2)hiiwi  Magdalene 
darissime  Scotoniin  Reginey  As  in  that  by  George  Buchanan, 
the  dead  Q,ueen  appears  to  be  uttering  a  v^arning  voice  from  the 
tomb  on  the  vanity  of  all  earthly  glories,  but  in  this  there  is  a 
prevailing  tone  of  tenderness  for  her  v^^edded  Love,  represented  as 
surviving  the  dissolution  of  her  earthly  tabernacle,  and  even  from 
heaven  appealing  to  him  for  remembrance.  Whoever  this  name- 
less bard  of  the  sixteenth  century  might  be,  w^ho  for  lack  of  paper 
penned  his  Epitaphium  on  Glueen  Magdalene  on  the  leaves  of 
a  grave  law-book,  he  formed  an  accurate  estimate  of  the  endur- 
ing nature  of  woman's  love.  An  English  version  is  offered  for 
the  sake  of  readers  not  versed  in  the  mysteries  of  Scotch  Latinity 
of  that  period  : — 

"  I  Magdalaine,  a  royal  wife  and  Queen, 
The  eldest  daughter  of  the  Fleur-de-Lys, 
Ascend  to  heaven  ;  but  he,  my  King  and  Lord, 
To  whom  in  worth  and  noble  qualities 
Earth  holds  no  parallel,  bears  heavily 
My  early  doom. 

Fair  Scotland,  generous  land. 
And  ever  dear  to  France  !  thy  gallant  peers 
And  faithful  people  mourn.     Yet  what  avails 
Protracted  life  ?     Pale  death  promiscuously 
Destroys  both  youth  and  age  ;  therefore,  my  James  1 
Live  and  be  happy  even  to  the  years 
Of  aged  Nestor ;  but,  as  I  of  thee, 
Be  thou  of  me  still  mindful." 

A  curious  detail  of  the  funeral  pomps  used  at  the  obsequies  of 

^  Bright,  of  course — a  favorite  term  formerly  ;  something  like  "  inclytoC 
in  reference  to  females. 

'^  I  am  indebted  to  the  research  of  that  courteous  and  learned  antiqua- 
rian, John  Ptiddel,  Esq.,  of  the  Faculty  of  Advocates,  for  the  communication 
of  the  above  and  many  other  curious  transcripts  of  inedited  documents  illus- 
trative of  the  Queen  of  Scotland  and  their  courts,  for  which  grateful 
acknowledgments  are  due. 

*  By  the  same  gentleman. 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  305 

Queen  Magdalene  exists  among  the  Exchequer  E,ecords  in  the 
Register  House  at  Edinburgh,  with  the  expenses  of  the  various 
items ;  but  however  precious  such  records  may  be  to  the  archse- 
ologists,  we  are  persuaded  that  a  few  particulars  of  the  rich  bridal 
gear  she  brought  with  her  from  France,  will  prove  more  accept- 
able to  our  fair  readers  than  a  lugubrious  page  of  doole  and 
dinges.  Fortunately,  a  descriptive  catalogue  of  the  dresses  of 
this  splendidly-endowed  Glueen  has  been  preserved  among  the 
royal  wardrobe  accounts  of  James  V.,  entitled — "  Ane  Inventour 
of  the  claythis  quhilk  pertenit  to  umquhill  Q,uene  Magdalene, 
quhome  God  assoilzie,  maid  at  Edinburgh  the  fourt  day  of 
December  in  the  year  of  God  j™-  v"'  fourty-twa  yeires  [1542], 
quhilk  claythis  were  restand  07idisponit  [undisposed  of]  at  the 
making  of  the  said  Inventour."  ^ 

There  is  something  touching — although  the  inventory  was,  of 
course,  a  mere  matter  of  business,  like  the  taking  stock  in  a 
merchant's  warehouse — in  the  list  of  all  this  brave  array  pertain- 
ing to  the  deceased  Q,ueen,  with  the  prayer  for  her  soul  insin- 
uated j^:)«r  parenthesis  by  the  clerk  of  the  wardrobe,  with  the 
intimation,  too,  that  these  clothes  were  resting  undisposed  of  at 
that  date — five  years  and  five  months  after  her  death.  Precious 
relics  as  they  doubtless  were  esteemed  by  the  bereaved  consort 
of  her  for  whose  sweet  sake  they  had  been  hoarded,  yet  it  appears 
from  the  said  inventory  that  pilfering  hands  had  been  busy  in 
abstracting  certain  portions  of  some  of  those  royal  robes,  especially 
in  the  sleeve  departments,  which  were  always  of  very  costly 
materials.     This  is  the  case  with  the  very  first  article  in  the  list. 

"  Item,  171  primis,  ane  gown  of  black  velvott,  lynit  with  quhyt  (white) 
tafFate,  quhairof  the  sieves  hes  bein  lynit  with  letuis  (latticed  ribbons),  and 
the  same  taen  forth." 

Again,  there  is  "  ane  night-gown  of  cramasy  satin,  whereof  the  sleeves 
are  harit  (furred)  with  mertrikis  (some  costly  kind  of  sable),  quhilk  has 
been  all  passimented,  and  the  same  taken  off. 

"  Item,  ane  short  gown  of  sad  cramassy  velvet,  lined  with  white  taffaties, 
the  sides  with  white  letuis,  which  has  been  passamented,  and  the  same 
taken  away." 

The  names  of  the  materials  of  which  certain  of  these  dresses 

^  Royal  Wardrobe-Book  of  Scotland,  edited  by  Thomas  Thomson,  Esq. 
of  Shrub  Hill,  Leith. 


306  MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE. 

are  made  and  trimmed  are  somewhat  mysterious  :  for  instance, 
"  there  is  ane  night-gown  of  tiveldore,'"  cloth  of  gold  {toile  d'or), 
we  presume,  "lined  with  white  taffaty,  getit  (?)  upon  the  edge 
with  crimson  velvet."     There  is  also — 

"  Ane  kirtill  of  tweldore,  ■with  ane  small  geit  of  crimson  velvet. 
"  Item,  ane  gown  of  cloth  of  gold  the  field  of  silver  lined  with  "white  taf- 
faty, and  the  body  harit  (furred)  \^ii\\  peudeniter  (?) 

She  had,  among  other  costly  gear,  "  ane  gown  of  frosted  cloth 
of  gold,  fielded  upon  black,  and  lined  with  black  taffaty  ;  and 
a  kirtle  of  violet  satin  all  broidered  o'er  with  gold,  and  lined  with 
black  taffaty." 

There  is  no  end  of  her  stores  of  costly  materials,  such  as  cloth- 
of-gold,  cloth-of-silver,  purple  velvet,  black  velvet,  blue  velvet, 
white  damask,  violet  satin,  &c.,  which  remained  unmade  at  the 
time  of  her  death,  yea,  and  were  resting  still  unmade  when  the 
above  inventory  was  made,  "in  a  coffer  whereof,"  says  the 
official,  "my  Lord  Treasurer  has  the  key." 

Among  some  of  the  costly  furniture  which  dueen  Magdalene 
brought  with  her  from  France,  were  six  stools  for  women  to  sit 
on,  covered  with  sad  cramasy  velvet.  This  was  the  first  intro- 
duction^  in  the  court  of  Holyrood,  of  the  tabouret  seats  for  ladies 
privileged  to  sit  in  the  presence  of  the  Q,ueen.  Sofas  or  couches 
are  mentioned  in  the  wardrobe  hiventories  of  King  James  V.,  by 
the  quaint  name  of  "lyares," — "  Item,  ane  lyare  (plainly  some- 
thing tol  ie  on)  of  purpure  velvett,  with  twa  cushions  of  the  same." 

The  coffin  of  dueen  Magdalene  was  deposited  near  that  of 
James  II.  of  Scotland,  in  the  royal  vault  of  Holyrood  Abbey. 
Her  bereaved  consort  directed  that  a  space  should  be  reserved  by 
her  side  for  his  last  resting-place.  How  soon  he  was  destined  to 
occupy  it  will  be  related  in  due  course  of  chronology,  in  the  suc- 
ceeding biographies  of  his  second  queen,  Mary  of  Lorraine,  and 
their  royal  daughter  Mary  Stuart,  Glueen-regnant  of  Scotland. 
It  is  painful  to  be  compelled  to  conclude  the  biography  of  Mag- 
dalene by  recording  the  revolting  fact  that  the  sanctuary  of  her 
grave  was  subsequently  violated  by  the  rabble  who,  in  the  year 
1688,  plundered  and  defaced  that  national  gem  of  ecclesiastical 
architecture — the  Chapel  of  Holyrood.  Not  contented  with  the 
havoc  they  had  perpetrated  in  chancel,  choir,  and  aisle,  they 
broke  into  the  royal  vault,  tore  the  lids .  from  the  cpffins,  and 


MAGDALENE     OF     FRANCE.  307 

insulted  the  ashes  of  the  illustrious  dead.^  The  body  of  Glueen 
Magdalene,  which  was  then  in  perfect  preservation,  was  rudely 
dragged  from  its  depository,  and  profaned  by  ruffian  hands.  Ar- 
not,  the  historian  of  Edinburgh,  who  saw  it  in  1776,  says, — 
"  The  head  of  Glueen  Magdalene  was  then  entire,  and  even 
beautiful  :"  it  was,  however,  feloniously  abstracted.'^ 

What  would  have  been  the  feelings  of  those  who  had  wept 
over  the  early  bier  of  this  deeply  regretted  (iueen,  and  enshrined 
her  memory  in  an  atmosphere  of  national  veneration,  if  they 
could  have  imagined  the  possibility  of  insults  being  offered  to  her 
remains,  that  would  have  reflected  disgrace  on  heathens  in  the 
lowest  grade  of  barbarism  ! 

The  untimely  death  of  Magdalene  de  Valois  has  been  regarded 
as  a  national  calamity ;  but,  to  herself,  the  early  release  from 
the  splendid  cares  of  royalty  was  probably  a  merciful  dispensa- 
tion. She  would  have  felt  that  her  diadem  had  thorns  as  well 
as  roses,  had  her  life  and  reign  been  prolonged.  More  fortunate 
than  Mary  Stuart,  she  was  spared  the  pangs  of  experiencing  the 
fickle  nature  of  popular  favor  by  dying  before  her  subjects  had 
time  to  discover  her  faults,  or  grow  tired  of  her  good  qualities. 

^  Arnott's  History  of  Edinburgh,  255.  ^  Ibid. 


MAEY    OF    LORRAIIE 


MARY    OF    LORRAINE. 


CHAPTER    I. 


SUMMARY. 

Personal  acquaintance  of  James  V.  and  Mary  of  Lorraine— Her  doscent  from  Charlemagne 
— Her  father,  Claud  Duke  of  Guise — Her  mother,  Antoinette  de  Bourbon- Vendome — 
Her  birth — Her  brothers,  &c. — Marriage  to  Louis  Duke  of  Longueville — Birth  of  her 
eldest  son— Early  death  of  her  husband— Her  deep  grief— Renunciation  of  Paris  and  the 
world — Francis  I.  destines  her  hand  for  James  V. — Birth  of  her  posthumous  son — Henry 
VHI.  demands  her  in  marriage — She  declines  his  offer — His  perseverance — She  pleads 
her  duty  to  her  children — Death  of  her  youngest  infant — Henry  VIII.  continues  his  suit 
— Francis  I.  engages  her  to  the  King  of  Scots — Gives  her  a  rich  dowry — Her  betrothal 
at  Chasteaudun — Her  marriage  to  King  James  by  proxy  at  Notre  Dame — Her  voyage — 
Lands  at  Crail — Met  by  James  V. — Reception  at  St.  Andrews  as  Queen  of  Scotland — Her 
opinions  of  the  people  and  country— Portraits  of  her  and  James— Particulars  of  her 
courts  at  St.  Andrevrs,  LinHthgow,  Stirling,  and  Falkland — Birth  of  her  son,  James 
Prince  of  Scotland,  May,  1539 — Queen's  presents  at  her  son's  baptism — She  is  alarmed 
by  reports  that  her  husband  was  lost  at  sea — His  joyful  return  to  her — His  poem  of 
Christ's  Kirk  on  the  Green. 

Of  all  the  ladies  James  V.  of  Scotland  had  seen  in  France,  with 
the  exception  of  his  lovely  and  beloved  Magdalene,  he  had  ad- 
mired Mary  of  Lorraine,  Duchess  de  Longueville,  the  most.  In- 
deed, there  is  reason  to  believe  that  an  impression  was  made  on 
the  susceptible  heart  of  the  errant  monarch  by  the  charms  of 
this  fair  Duchess,  previous  to  his  introduction  to  the  royal  flower 
of  Valois.  Drummond  of  Hawthornden  says, — "While  James 
disported  himself  in  France,  he  had  made  acquaintance  with  a 
lady  rich  in  excellences,  who,  next  to  Magdalene,  had  the  power 
of  his  affections,  Mary  of  Lorraine,  sister  to  Francis,  daughter  of 
Claud  Duke  of  Guise,  and  widow  of  the  Duke  of  Longueville." 
Mary  of  Lorraine,  however,  was  not  the  widow,  but  the  wife  of 
the  Duke  of  Longueville,  at  the  time  she  and  James  of  Scotland 
first  met,  which  in  all  probability  was  at  the  court  of  her  moth- 


312  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

er's  brother,  the  Duke  of  Vendome,  when  the  royal  bachelor, 
King  James,  came  in  disguise  to  steal  an  unsuspected  look  at 
Mary  of  Vendome,  to  whom  his  hand  was  plighted.  Now,  as 
Chasteaudun — one  of  the  family  seats  of  the  Duke  of  Longue- 
ville — was  in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  Vendome,  it  is 
possible  that  the  Duchess  of  Longueville  was  present  at  the  very 
time  when  her  cousin,  Mary  of  Vendome,  recognized  the  King 
of  Scotland  by  his  likeness  to  his  portrait.  It  has  already  been 
shown  that  James  remained  several  days  at  that  little  court, 
though  he  was  from  the  first  determined  not  to  fulfill  his  engage- 
ment with  Mary  of  Vendome,  who  did  not  please  his  fastidious 
taste.  It  may  be  asked  what  attraction  detained  him  there, 
after  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  break  his  engagement  with 
the  one  cousin,  if  it  were  not  the  pleasure  he  felt  in  the  company 
of  the  other.  But  Mary  of  Lorraine  was  the  wife,  the  happy 
wife,  of  the  Duke  of  Longueville,  and  the  mother  of  his  infant 
heir,  with  every  prospect  of  passing  years  of  domestic  felicity  in 
her  own  country,  with  those  ties  of  virtuous  affection.  James 
must,  therefore,  have  felt  the  uselessness  of  allowing  his  thoughts 
to  dwell  on  her  ;  and  after  he  had  once  seen  Magdalene,  what- 
ever impression  had  been  made  on  him  by  the  Duchess  of  Lon- 
gueville, was  superseded  by  an  absorbing  passion  for  that  prin- 
cess, which  lasted  long  after  the  bonds  of  wedded  love  were  sev- 
ered by  the  inexorable  hand  of  death. 

By  a  singular  coincidence,  it  happened  that  the  beautiful 
Duchess  of  Longueville  became  a  widow  just  one  month  and  a  day 
before  James  V.  of  Scotland  was  bereaved  of  his  youthful  Q,ueen. 

That  mysterious  affair  called  the  Glammis  conspiracy,^  being 
an  allegded  plot  against  King  James's  life  by  the  sister  of  the 
banished  Earl  of  Angus,  gave  cause  to  his  sage  counsellors  to 
urge  him  to  endeavor,  by  a  second  marriage,  to  provide  for 
a  peaceful  succession  to  the  crown  by  royal  issue  of  his  own. 

The  popularity,  and  indeed  the  pecuniary  advantages  which 
had  attended  James's  wedlock  with  a  royal  daughter  of  France, 
naturally  disposed  him  to  turn  his  thoughts  to  that  realm  for  a 
second  alliance,  which  might  strengthen  all  the  political  advan- 
tages procured  by  his  first  marriage. 

^  Pinkerton,  vol.  ii.  p.  347.  Pinkerton,  as  well  as  our  eminent  cotempo- 
rary,  Mr.  Tytler,  considers  that  James  V.  was  really  conspired  against  in 
this  plot.     See  also  Pitcairn's  Criminal  Trials, 


MARYOFLORKAINE.  313 

His  thoughts,  then,  by  a  very  natural  association  of  ideas, 
recurred,  not  as  they  ought  to  have  done,  to  the  forsaken  Mary 
of  Vendome,  with  the  laudable  resolution  of  endeavoring  to  atone 
to  her  for  his  breach  of  contract  by  offering  her  the  reversion  of 
his  hand,  but  to  her  who  had  almost  disputed  his  heart  with 
Magdalene,  the  blooming  Duchess  of  Longueville,  who  was,  ac- 
cording to  Balfour,  "  a  luerrey  beivtiful  lady^  ^ 

"  Her,"  says  Drummond  of  Hawthornden,  "  he  thinketh  for  her 
stem,  healthful  complexion,  and  fertility — for  she  had  been  a 
mother — worthy  of  his  love  ;  and  to  try  her  affections  toward 
himself,  he  directeth  David  Beton  and  the  Lord  Maxwell  to 
negotiate  this  marriage." 

In  rank,  the  Duchess  of  Longueville  was  some  degrees  beneath 
the  first  consort  of  James  V.,  but  in  point  of  descent,  the  blood 
that  flowed  in  her  veins  as  a  daughter  of  the  Carlovingian  house 
of  Lorraine,  was  no  whit  inferior  to  that  of  Magdalene  of  Valois, 
and  fully  equal  to  that  of  the  proudest  of  the  royal  families  of 
Europe. 

Not  one  of  these,  in  any  of  its  branches,  ever  attained  to  the 
power  and  dignity  acquired  by  the  mighty  progenitor  of  Mary  of 
Lorraine,  whose  widely-extended  empire  has  only  been  paralleled 
in  modern  times  by  that  of  Napoleon.  The  ebb  of  that  flood- 
tide  of  greatness,  if  less  sudden,  was  equally  remarkable,  and 
affords  a  grand  moral  lesson  of  the  mutations  of  earthly 
glory.  But  the  details  of  the  expulsion  of  the  Carlovingian  line 
from  imperial  greatness  belong  not  to  the  biography  of  this 
Princess.  We  must  refer  the  reader  to  the  heraldic  tables  of 
the  royal  houses  of  France,  and  the  chronicles  of  Lorraine,  for  the 
particulars  of  Mary's  descent  and  genealogy  are  too  voluminous 
and  complicated  to  be  recorded  here.  Her  father,  Claud  of  Lor- 
raine, the  founder  of  the  house  of  Guise,  was  the  fifth  son  of 
Rene  II.  Duke  of  Lorraine,  and  Philippa  of  Gueldres.  Through 
his  maternal  lineage  he  was  related  to  James  V,,  that  monarch 
being  the  great-grandson  of  Mary  of  Gueldres. 

Lorraine,  the  principality  of  Mary's  paternal  grandsire,  is  situ- 
ated with  Champagne  extended  at  its  feet,  Alsace  and  the  Palat- 
inate of  the  Uhine  on  one  side,  Luxembourg  to  the  north,  and 
Burgundy  to  the  south.  Its  inhabitants  partake  much  of  the  firm 
bold  character  of  the  Swiss.  The  country  is  mountainous,  and 
1  Annals  of  Scotland,  vol.  i. 
ypL  I. — 0 


314  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

is  enriched  by  the  vine-clad  river  of  the  Moselle  ;  its  rocks  are 
replete  with  mines  of  copper,  silver,  lead,  and,  above  all,  with 
iron.  The  Haute-Lorraine  was  the  principal  mineral  district  in 
France,  and  mining  was  carried  on  with  considerable  spirit  there 
in  the  middle  ages — a  circumstance  which  was  not  forgotten  by 
Mary  of  Lorraine  ;  indeed  it  forms  a  remarkable  feature  in  her 
Scottish  annals,  both  as  Q,ueen-consort  and  Regent. 

Her  father,  Claud  of  Lorraine,  occupying  only  the  martlet's 
place,  as  the  fifth  son  of  a  family  whose  imperial  inheritance 
had  dwindled  down  to  an  independent  dukedom,  found  himself 
under  the  necessity  of  fulfilling  the  heraldic  proverb  by  enacting 
the  part  assigned  to  cadets  whose  shield  is  distinguished  by  that 
migratory  emblem.^  Having  no  portion  in  the  patrimonial  lands 
of  his  family,  the  martlet  of  Lorraine  sought  and  found  fortune 
in  the  court  of  his  maternal  uncle,  the  Duke  of  Gueldres,  and, 
by  his  good  conduct  and  military  talents,  early  inspired  that 
Prince  with  a  high  opinion  of  his  worth.  The  Duke  of  Gueldres 
engaging  in  the  service  of  Francis  L  in  the  memorable  Italian 
campaign  of  1515,  Claud  followed  his  banner  over  the  Alps  ; 
when  the  Duke,  hearing  that  the  Brabanters  had  made  a  perfidi- 
ous attack  on  his  dominions,  returned  home  in  haste  to  repel 
them,  and  confided  the  command  of  the  ten  thousand  men  he 
had  brought  to  augment  the  French  army  to  his  youthful  nephew 
of  Lorraine.  The  valor  of  young  Claud  turned  the  fortunes  of 
the  day  for  France  at  Marignan,  where  he  rallied  the  panic- 
stricken  lanz-knechts,  and  led  them  up  to  the  charge  again  with 
resistless  energy  of  purpose.  In  subsequent  parts  of  the  engage- 
ment he  distinguished  himself  no  less,  but  at  length  fell  from  his 
horse  pierced  with  two-and-twenty  wounds.  His  squire,  Adam 
of  Nuremberg,  was  slain  defending  him,  but  his  life  was  pre- 
served through  the  friendship  of  a  Scotch  gentleman  in  the 
Flemish  service — a  descendant,  probably,  of  some  protege  or 
servant  of  Mary  of  Gueldres,  Q.ueen  of  Scotland — one  Captain 
Jamie  Scott,  who  extricated  his  mangled  and  insensible  form 
from  among  the  dead  and  dying,  and  conveyed  him  to  a  tent, 
where  his  wounds  were  dressed  ;  and  in  three  months  he  was  so 
well  recovered  that,  in  performance  of  a  superstitious  vow  he  had 
made  during  his  illness,  he  performed  a  pilgrimage  on  foot,  armed 

1  The  martlet  is  the  heraldic  sign  of  the  fifth  son,  who,  in  the  good  old 
times,  was  landless,  and  therefore  figured  by  a  bird  of  passage. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  315 

cap-a-jjie,  to  the  shrine  of  St.  Nicholas  of  Lorraine.^  Francis  I. 
rewarded  him  for  his  signal  service  on  the  day  of  Marignan,  with 
the  dukedom  of  Guise,  and  made  him  a  knight  of  his  own  royal 
order  of  St.  Michael.  Young  as  Claud  was,  he  was  a  married 
man  at  the  period  when  he  thus  distinguished  himself,  if  the 
date  of  his  marriage  with  Antoinette  de  Bourbon,  the  daughter 
of  the  Count  de  Vendome  and  Mary  of  Luxembourg,  April  18, 
1513,  be  correct. 

Mary  of  Lorraine  was  the  eldest  child  of  this  pair.  She  was 
born  Nov.  22,  1515,  at  Bar-le-Duc,  the  capital  of  the  Duchy  of 
Bar.  This  castle  was  built  by  Frederick,  Duke  of  Lorraine,  on 
an  almost  inaccessible  rock,  round  which  the  little  river  Onain 
rushes  to  precipitate  itself  into  the  Saux,  one  of  the  tributaries 
of  the  Marne.  A  small  fragment  still  exists  of  this  eagle's  nest, 
where  the  mother  of  Mary  Stuart  first  saw  the  light. 

As  the  Duchess  of  Guise  did  not  bear  a  second  child  for  up- 
ward of  four  years,  Mary  of  Lorraine  was  for  that  period  con- 
sidered the  heiress  of  the  house — no  mean  inheritance,  for  the 
lands  and  honors  of  Aumale,  Elboeuf,  and  Mayenne  had  been 
added  to  her  father's  appanage.  He  was  also  made  governor  of 
Burgundy  and  Champagne.  In  1519  the  birth  of  his  son  Francis, 
who  afterward  obtained  the  soubriquet  of  Balafre,  followed  by 
five  others,^  and  three  daughters,  reduced  Mary  to  a  less  proud 
position  in  the  eye  of  the  world.  But  her  beauty,  her  wit,  her 
quick  talents,  and  stately  figure — endowments  of  which  no  change 
of  fortune  could  dispossess  her — marked  her  as  a  genuine  descend- 
ant of  Charlemagne,  and  procured  for  her  general  admiration  as 

1  Brantome,  in  his  Life  of  Claud's  elder  brother,  Antoine,  Due  de  Lor- 
raine, gives  a  somewhat  different  version  of  this  heroic  episode  in  the  history 
of  the  father  of  Mary  of  Lorraine. 

^  More  than  one  among  the  following  list  of  brothers  was  closely  linked 
with  the  fortunes  of  their  sister  Mary  and  her  descendants.  Francis,  the 
well-known  Balafre,  born  1519,  was  consequently  four  years  younger  than 
Mary  ;  Charles,  afterward  the  celebrated  Cardinal  of  Lorraine,  and  spiritual 
peer  of  France  under  the  title  of  Duke  of  Rheims,  born  Feb.  17,  1524; 
Claud,  Duke  of  Aumale,  1525  ;  Louis  of  Lorriane,  Cardinal  of  Guise,  and 
Archbishop  of  Sens,  born  Oct.  1527;  Francis  (2)  of  Lorraine,  Grand-prior 
of  Malta,  and  general  (admiral)  of  the  galleys  of  France,  born  April  18, 
1535;  Rene,  Duke  d'Elboeuf;  Pierre  and  Philip,  who  died  in  infancy. 
Louise,  born  Jan.  1520,  married  Du  Leroy,  Prince  of  Chimay;  Renee, 
Abbess  of  Rheims,  born  Sept.  22,  1522 ;  Antoinette  of  Lorraine,  Abbess  of 
Farmoustier,  born  August  31,  1531. — Moreiri. 


316  MARY     OF     LORRAINE- 

she  advanced  toward  womanhood.  Naturally  of  a  most  affectionate 
disposition,  so  far  from  regarding  the  numerous  train  of  brethren 
whose  birth  had  not  only  cut  her  off  from  a  rich  inlieritance,  but 
reduced  her  portion  to  a  paltry  pittance,  with  invidious  feelings, 
Mary  loved  them  all  too  dearly  ;  for  it  is  possible  that  a  Princess 
may  carry  the  love  of  kindred  and  country  to  an  excess  fatal  to 
her  children,  and  thus  it  eventually  proved  with  Mary  of  Lorraine, 
when  Q,ueen-Regent  of  Scotland.  That  she  was  proud  of  her 
parentage  and  kindred,  brought  up  as  she  had  been  in  an  at- 
mosphere of  ancestral  romance  of  history,  is  not  surprising  ;  and 
however  unpopular,  we  may  almost  say  unconventional,  such 
feelings  may  be  in  England  and  Scotland,  Avhen  allied  with  a 
name  which  has  been  irreparably  sullied  by  its  connection  with 
the  foul  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew  and  the  persecution  of  the 
Huguenots,  it  is  full  of  chivalric  associations  for  those  of  the' 
same  faith  and  nation. 

"  Let  us,"  says  an  eloquent  French  writer  of  the  present  day,* 
"enter  the  grand  gallery  of  the  Chateau  d'Eu,  and  contemplate 
the  noble  portraits  of  the  line  of  Guise.  Tliere  we  shall  view 
that  old  Claud  of  Lorraine  clad  in  his  heavy  cuirass,  bearing  his 
long  sword,  first  dyed  in  blood  at  Marignan,  having  for  his  cor- 
tege and  companions  his  six  glorious  sons  ;  then  we  shall  see 
Francis  of  Lorraine,  rival  of  the  Emperor  Charles  the  Fifth,  and 
conqueror  of  Calais  ;  near  him  that  Cardinal  of  Lorraine,  elo- 
quent as  an  orator,  gallant  and  magnificent  as  a  prince,  yet  an 
ambitious  and  cruel  priest.  And  there  is  the  grandchild  of  Duke 
Claud,  Mary  Stuart,  angel  of  grief  and  poesy,  whose  charming 
head  bore  a  crown-regnant,  and  yet  fell  beneath  the  axe  of  the 
executioner." 

It  is  remarkable  that  half  of  this  numerous  progeny  of  Claud 
Lorraine  were  devoted  to  the  Church,  or  rather  to  her  rich  arch- 
bishoprics a,nd  abbacies.  For  of  the  six  surviving  sons  of  Claud 
of  Lorraine,  two  were  cardinals,  and  one  a  Grand-prior  of  Malta; 
of  his  four  daughters,  two  were  abbesses,^     No  wonder,  there- 

1  Vatout. 

"^  The  elder  Cardinal  of  Lorraine,  Jean,  brother  of  Claud,  Duke  de  Guise, 
commenced  this  most  evil  family  practice.  An  unexampled  number  of 
the  abbeys  and  dignities  of  the  Church  being  centered  in  his  own  person, 
the  Benedictine  historian  slyly  observes,  "  that  the  mere  calHng  over  the  roll 
of  his  titles  seemed  like  summoning  together  a  great  council  of  the  Church, 
although,  to  the  shame  and  woe  of  that  Church,  one  rich  and  powerful  man 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  3l7 

fore,  at  the  pertinacious  vehemence  with  which  the  sons  of  the 
house  of  Guise  championed  the  abuses  of  a  Church  which  pro- 
vided so  well  for  their  cadets. 

The  first  husband  of  Mary  of  Lorraine  was  Louis,  second 
Duke  of  Longueville,  the  great-grandson  and  representative  of 
that  illustrious  Count  de  'Dunois,  who  covered  the  stain  of  an 
illegitimate  birth  with  the  blazonry  of  his  chivalric  deeds.  Du- 
nois,  lejeune  et  brave,  as  the  national  songs  of  ancient  France 
style  him,  was  the  natural  son  of  Louis,  Duke  of  Orleans,  brother 
of  Charles  VL  of  France.  His  patriotic  achievements,  in  assist- 
ing to  deliver  his  country  from  the  English  yoke,  won  for  him 
the  honor  of  being  legitimated,  and  ranked  as  a  lawful  scion  of 
the  royal  house  of  France. 

Noble  domains  had  been  bestowed  on  Dunois  by  Charles  VIL, 
but  Chasteaudun,  always  called  "the  cradle  of  Dunois,"  was  his 
earliest  possession;^  and  this  was  settled  on  Mary  of  Lorraine  as 
her  dower  castle,  and  seems  to  have  been  ever  a  favorite  resi- 
dence with  her.  It  is  now  a  considerable  town  on  the  Loire. 
The  principal  building  is  a  vast  tower,  ninety  feet  in  height, 
built  in  the  tenth  century.  From  Chasteaudun  the  road  descends 
toward  the  banks  of  the  Loire.  At  a  short  distance  is  Ven- 
dome,  the  seat  of  the  elder  line  of  Bourbon,  which  vicinity  to 
her  mother's  family  endeared  Chasteaudun  to  Mary  ;  consequently 
it  is  the  scene  of  most  events  that  happened  to  her  when  she 
lived  in  France. 

The  great  power  and  wealth  of  Mary  of  Lorraine's  first  hus- 
band was  derived  from  his  mother,  Marie  d'Harcourt,  Chatellaine 
of  Tancarville,  and   as  such  hereditary  constable,  chamberlaine, 

answered  to  every  designation."  A  clear  idea  of  this  worldly  rapacity  of 
the  cadets  of  Guise  casts  light  on  the  difficulties  the  female  sovereigns  of 
their  house  had  to  stem,  and  on  their  motives  as  ultra-partisans  of  their 
Church. — L^Art  de  Verifier  les  Dates. 

^  Le  Laboneur  says,  in  his  Memoires  de  Castlenau,  tome  ii.  p.  655, 
"  Louis  XII,  was  greatly  attached  to  the  family  of  Dunois.  He  considered 
the  debt  of  gratitude  was  immense,  which  not  only  France  but  his  own  lisie 
owed  to  their  heroic  founder,  whom  he  called  the  '  restorer  of  France,'  and 
supporter  of  the  house  of  Orleans."  Francis  I.  confirmed  all  his  predecessor 
had  given  to  the  representatives  of  Dunois,  and  added  the  dukedom  of 
Longueville  to  their  domains  in  1505,  with  the  hereditaiy  dignity  of  Grand 
Chamberlain  of  France.  The  line  of  Dunois,  and  its  representative,  walked 
in  processions  with  the  princes  of  the  blood,  being  recognized  as  princes  of 
the  house  of  Orleans. 


318  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

and  mareschale  of  Normandy.     Tancarville,  whose    stately  re- 
mains are  familiar  to  every  one  voyaging  up  the  Seine,  as  com-  . 
manding  the  estuary  narrowing  toward  Honfleur,  was  the  com- 
mencement of  a  mighty  chain  of  castles  and  wide  domains  which 
gave  to  their  possessor  the  command  of  Normandy. 

The   illustrious   descent  of  Mary  from   the   mingled   lines  of 
Charlemagne  and  Bourbon,  her  noble  person  and  powerful  intel-  . 
lect,  were  the  inducements  which  led  the  young  Duke  of  Longue- 
ville  to  wed  her.     The  Duke  of  Guise,  her  father,  gave  her  four- 
score thousand  livres  de  toitrnois  for  her  marriage-portion  ;  but 
this  sum  was  settled  entirely  upon  herself,  and  remained  at  her 
own  disposal,^  as  we  shall  see  hereafter,  as  well  as  the  estates  and 
annuity  in  which  she  was  jointured  by  the  Duke  of  Longueville. 
The  nuptials  of  the  Duke  of  Longueville  and  Mary  were  sol- 
emnized on  the  4th  of  August,  1534.     It  was  a  marriage  very 
suitable,  in  all  respects,  and  probably  one  of  mutual  affection — 
for,  contrary  to  the    custom  of  the  period,  when  premature  wed- 
lock was  contracted  by  parents  between  boys  and  girls  in  their 
childhood,  the  bride  and  bridegroom  Avere  of  reasonable  age  to 
know  the  state  of  their  own  affections.     Mary  was  in  her  nine- 
teenth year,  and  the   Duke   de   Longueville    about  three  or  four 
and  twenty.     His  elder  brother  was  slain  at  the  early  age  of  six- 
teen, fighting  under  Fjancis  L,  at  the  disastrous  battle  of  Pavia. 
By  the  death  of  that  brother,  Louis  de  Longueville  had  succeeded 
to  the  wealth  and  honors  of  the  princely  house,  of  which  he  was, 
at  the  time  of  his  marriage,  the  head.     Besides  being  a  ducal 
peer,  he  was  the  Great  Chamberlain  of  France,  and  expected  to 
become,   as  his  father   had   been   before   him,  Governor  of  Nor- 
mandy.    Mary  of  Lorraine  was  very  happy  in  her  union  with 
this  Prince,  and   lived  with   him   in  great  state,   at  his  country 
palaces  of  Amiens,  Ptouen,  or  Chasteaudun.      Ten  months  after 
their  marriage,  their  conjugal  felicity  was  increased  by  the  birth 
of  an  heir.     This  event  took  place,  October  30,   1535,  at  the 
castle  of  Amiens.^ 

The  Duke  and  Duchess  of  Longueville  were  both  present  at 

1  This  fact  is  certified  by  the  preliminary  articles  of  Mary's  second  mar- 
riage with  James  V.  of  Scotland.  Printed  from  the  original  document  in 
the  Archives  du  Royaume  de  France,  in  Pieces  and  Documents  relative  to 
the  History  of  Scotland,  for  the  use  of  the  Bannatyne  Club, 

'  Letter  of  Jeanne,  Queen  of  Navarre,  to  Marie  of  Lorraine. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  319 

the  bridal  of  James  V.  and  Magdalene  of  France.  Little  did  the 
Duchess  imagine,  when  she,  as  the  wife  of  the  representative  of 
the  brave  Dimois^  and  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  house  of  Guise- 
Lorraine,  proudly  took  high  place  among  the  great  ladies  of 
France,  near  the  person  of  the  royal  bride,  that  the  crown-mat- 
rimonial of  Scotland — never  to  be  worn  by  her  on  whose  finger 
she  saw  the  enamored  bridegroom  place  the  nuptial  ring — was 
destined  to  encircle  her  own  brow.  Far  less  could  she  have  be- 
lieved, even  if  it  had  been  predicted  to  her,  that  from  her  union 
with  that  Prince  should  proceed  a  line  of  sovereigns  who  would 
reign  not  only  over  the  Britannic  isles  from  sea  to  sea,  but  whose 
empire,  far  exceeding  that  of  her  mighty  ancestor  Charlemagne, 
should  extend  over  India,  a  considerable  section  of  America,  and 
include  vast  portions  of  the  habitable  globe  whose  existence  was 
then  unknown.  Before  the  anniversary  returned  of  the  day  that 
witnessed  the  nuptials  of  James  and  Magdalene,  all  these  appa- 
rently impossible  events  were  in  an  active  state  of  progression. 

The  dance  of  death,  which  followed  so  closely  on  the  heels  of 
the  royal  bride  of  Scotland,  hurried  away,  even  more  suddenly, 
one  of  the  noble  spectators  of  the  ceremonial,  whom  no  one 
imagined  would  have  preceded  that  fragile  invalid  to  the  grave — 
namely,  the  husband  of  Mary  of  Lorraine,  Louis  IL,  Duke  of 
Longueville,  who  deceased  June  9,  1537,  in  the  flower  of  his 
age,  after  a  brief  but  happy  wedlock  of  less  than  three  years. 

The  young  widow,  who  was  left  with  an  infant  son  of  twenty 
months  old,  and  was  looking  forward  to  the  birth  of  another 
fatherless  babe  at  no  distant  period,  was  overwhelmed  with  grief. 
She  withdrew  from  Paris,  and  shut  herself  up  in  her  palace  at 
Amiens,  in  the  deepest  seclusion,  with  the  avowed  determination 
of  giving  up  the  world  forever,  and  appearing  no  more  at  that 
court,  of  which  her  wit  and  beauty  had  always  rendered  her  one 
of  the  most  briUiant  ornaments.  Having  tenderly  loved  the  hus- 
band of  whom  she  was  thus  unexpectedly  bereaved,  Mary  was 
doubtless  in  earnest  when  she  made  this  declaration  ;  but  the 
royal  blood  of  France,  which  was  in  her  veins,  rendered  her  de- 
pendent not  on  her  own  will,  but  that  of  her  sovereign.  She 
was  the  property  of  the  state  ;  and  even  before  the  birth  of  her 
infant,  Francis  I.  gave  her  to  understand,  that  the  interests  of 
her  country  required  that  she  should  enter  into  a  fresh  marriage 
in  the  course  of  a  few  months,  and  that  she  was  destined  to  sue- 


320  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

ceed  his  own  beloved  daughter  Magdalene  as  Q,ueen-consort  of 
Scotland,  thus  to  become  a  bond  of  alliance  between  that  realm 
and  France.  Some  time  elapsed  before  the  widowed  Duchess 
could  be  induced  to  signify  her  submission  to  this  arrangement. 
Francis  treated  her  demurs  as  perfectly  childish  and  inconsequen- 
tial, and  gave  her  the  rank  of  a  daughter  of  France,  by  adoption, 
in  order  to  render  her  a  suitable  bride  for  his  royal  son-in-law. 

Meantime,  the  posthumous  child  of  her  late  husband,  the  Duke 
of  Longueville,  was  born,  but  lived  only  a  few  weeks.  She 
named  him,  after  his  deceased  father,  Louis.  His  death  proved  an 
additional  source  of  grief  to  her.^  Scarcely  had  Mary  left  her 
lying-in-chamber,  when  the  crown-matrimonial  of  England,  as 
well  as  that  of  Scotland,  courted  her  accej)tance.  Since  the 
death  of  her  husband  in  the  preceding  June,  the  Kings  of  Eng- 
land and  Scotland  had  both  become  widowers,  and  both  were 
candidates  for  her  hand.^  James  had  not  only  the  advantages 
which  his  fine  person,  graceful  manners,  and  being  twenty  years 
younger,  gave  him  in  the  contest  over  his  uncle,  but  a  priority  of 
claim,  for  the  hand  of  the  fair  Avidow  had  been  promised  to  him 
by  the  King  of  France  several  weeks  before  Henry  was  in  a  posi- 
tion to  demand  her  ;  being  at  that  time  the  husband  of  Jane 
Seymour.  It  appears  that,  as  early  as  the  first  week  in  October, 
1537,  Margaret  Tudor,  the  Glueen-mother  of  Scotland,  had  in- 
formed the  English  ambassador  to  that  court,  Lord  Wharton, 
that  the  matrimonial  treaty  between  her  son  and  the  Duchess- 
dowager  of  Longueville  was  concluded — that  the  bride  was  lusty 
(meaning  lovely)  and  fair — that  she  had  a  jointure  of  thirty 
thousand  francs  from  the  duchy  of  Longueville,  and  one  surviving 
son  by  the  late  Duke.^ 

Some  discussion  had  also  taken  place  with  Henry  himself,  on 
the  subject  of  her  journey  through  England,  to  which,  previously 
to  the  death  of  his  Q.ueen,  Jane  Seymour,  he  had  signified  his 
consent.*  Li  less  than  a  month,  however,  after  the  unexpected 
decease  of  that  lady  in  childbed,  and  while  all  the  simple  folk  in 
England  were  possessed  with  the  idea  of  his  inconsolable  grief 
for  her  loss,  the  royal  widower  began  to  amuse  himself  with  al- 
most daily  conferences  with  the  French  ambassador,  of  which  the 

1  Moreiri.  ^  Dispatches  of  Chatillon,  Bibl.  du  Roi. 

'  Wharton  to  Cromwell,  October  4,  153t.     State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  112. 
*  Ibid. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  321 

object  was  the  selection  of  a  fourth  consort.^  Having  communi- 
cated to  Francis  I.  his  desire  of  choosing  a  princess  of  his 
lineage  for  his  next  queen,  that  monarch  politely  replied — "  that 
there  was  not  a  maid  or  widow  of  suitable  degree  in  France,  but 
should  be  at  his  choice." 

The  fact  of  the  royal  English  Bluebeard's  modest  requisition, 
that  a  bevy  of  the  fairest  and  noblest  of  the  French  ladies  should 
be  conducted  to  Calais  or  Boulogne  for  his  consideration,  and  the 
courteous  reproof  of  Francis  I.  on  that  occasion,  are  too  well 
known  to  require  recapitulation  here ;  however,  Henry  was 
assured  that,  if  he  would  mention  any  lady  in  particular,  she 
should  be  guaranteed  to  him.  Henry,  though  well  aware  of  her 
position  with  regard  to  his  nephew,  named  the  Duchess-dowager 
of  Longueville. 

Chatillon  told  him  "  she  was  promised  to  the  King  of  Scotland." 

Henry  intimated  his  knowledge  of  Mary's  demurs  against 
entering  into  a  second  marriage,  by  rejoining  with  a  significant 
emphasis,   ''She  has  not  promised  yet." 

He  then  insisted  that  Chatillon  should  communicate  his  wish 
to  Francis  I.,  observing,  at  the  same  time,  "that  he  would  do 
twice  as  much  for  that  prince  as  the  King  of  Scots  could,  if  he 
would  promote  his  suit."  Francis  expressed  his  regret  that  the 
matter  was  impossible. 

"  How  !"  cried  Henry  indignantly  to  Chatillon,  "  did  not  your 
master  say  '  that  there  was  not  a  maid  or  widow  of  any  degree 
in  France,  but  should  be  at  my  service  ?'  " 

"  Would  you  marry  the  wife  of  another  ?"  was  the  re- 
joinder. 

"  She  is  not  his  wife  yet,"  persisted  Henry,  who  had  fallen  in 
love  with  his  nephew's  bride  elect  from  the  description  he  had 
received  of  her  charms  and  amiable  qualities  from  Mr.  Wallop, 
one  of  his  envoys  to  the  court  of  France.^  Her  majestic  height, 
and  the  noble  proportions  of  her  figure,  were  often  the  subject  of 
Henry's  discourse.^  "  He  is  so  in  love  with  Madame  de  Longue- 
ville," writes  Chatillon,  "  that  he  is  always  recurring  to  it.  I 
have  told  him  she  is  engaged  to  the  King  of  Scotland,  but  he 
refuses  to  believe  it.     He  says   '  he  requires   such  a  queen  as  she 

^  MSS.  Dispatches  of  M.  de  Chatillon,  Bibl.  du  Roi,  Paris. 

^  Chatillon's  Dispatches.  ^  Ibid. 


322  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

would  make,  that  he  admires  a  tall  woman,  and  wishes  for  her 
in  particular.'  " 

Henry  spake,  moreover,  of  "  her  gentle  conditio7is"  (disposi- 
tion), having  heard  she  had  made  a  loving  and  dutiful  wife  to 
the  Duke  of  Longueville ;  and,  above  all,  he  thought  she  would 
he  likely  to  bring  him  male  children,  having  borne  two  sons  to 
her  late  lord.  "  Nevertheless,"  returned  the  ambassador,  "  she 
is  insured  to  the  King  of  Scots  ;  and  if  you  take  your  nephew's 
wife,  the  issue  of  such  matrimony  would  be  unlawful."  ^ 

Notwithstanding  this  sensible  remonstrance,  Henry  persisted 
in  his  attempt  to  supplant  his  nephew,  by  making  a  proposal  in 
form  to  the  widowed  Duchess  herself  She  replied  that  "  she 
was  sensible  of  the  great  honor  he  was  willing  to  confer  on  her, 
but  she  was  so  much  absorbed  in  grief  for  the  loss  of  her  late 
husband  that  she  had  resolved  never  to  take  another,  but  to 
devote  her  life  to  his  memory,  and  the  care  and  education  of  her 
children."  ^  This  was,  of  course,  before  the  death  of  the  baby 
Louis,  as  she  speaks  of  the  offspring  of  herself  and  the  Duke  of 
Longueville  in  the  plural  number. 

Now,  as  the  lady  made  no  mention  of  an  engagement  to  the 
rival  royal  suitor,  Henry  fancied,  perhaps,  that  her  rejection  of 
himself,  however  positive,  was  merely  the  result  of  coyness,  and 
a  sort  of  ceremonial  devotion  to  the  memory  of  the  deceased 
Duke,  which  would  scarcely  resist  the  persevering  addresses  of  a 
Prince  who  could  lay  the  queenly  diadem  of  England  at  her  feet. 
He  made  himself  confident,  withal,  that  a  daughter  of  the  aspi- 
ring house  of  Guise-Lorraine  would  scarcely  wed  the  king  of  so 
poor  a  realm  as  Scotland,  when  she  might  become  the  consort  of 
a  sovereign  of  his  power  and  importance.  That  Mary  had  any 
choice  in  the  matter  is  doubtful ;  but  it  appears  probable  that, 
having  previously  expressed  an  insuperable  reluctance  to  enter 
into  a  second  marriage,  and  her  acceptance  of  the  King  of  Scot- 
land being  made  public  early  in  the  new  year  (1538),  she 
entered  into  that  engagement  at  last  not  only  in  compliance  with 
the  will  of  her  own  sovereign,  but  to  avert  the  possibility  of 
being,  by  any  change  of  politics,  consigned  as  a  state  victim  to 
the  royal  wife-killer  of  England,  who  had  a  daughter  two  years 
older  than  herself,  and  was  already  provided  with  a  male  heir  to 

*  Chatillon's  Dispatches.  "  Moreiri,  vol.  vi.  p.  152. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  323 

his  dominions.  She  had  good  cause  to  shelter  herself  under  the 
protection  of  a  matrimonial  contract  with  her  accomplished  suit- 
or, the  King  of  Scotland,  as  quickly  as  was  consistent  with 
propriety ;  for  King  Henry,  without  paying  the  slightest  regard 
to  her  own  rejection  of  his  addresses,  continued  even  to  the  mid- 
dle of  February  to  demand  her  of  her  adopted  father  and 
sovereign,  with  the  petulant  pertinacity  of  a  spoiled  child,  and 
even  threatened  hostilities  with  France,  under  the  plea  that 
Francis  had  promised  to  give  him  any  lady  in  his  dominions,  and 
yet  refused  the  only  one  he  considered  worthy  of  his  choice.  The 
ambassador  told  him  his  sovereign  was  willing  to  give  him  his 
only  surviving  daughter,  Margaret  of  France  ;  but  as  she  was 
scarcely  thirteen,  Henry  peevishly  rejected  her  as  too  young. 
His  excellency  suggested  a  sister  of  the  Duchess  of  Longueville, 
"  who  was,"  he  said,  "  much  more  beautiful  than  Mary  ;  "  but 
the  royal  widower  could  not  be  persuaded  to  listen  to  that  pro- 
posal ;  and  when  the  ambassador  told  him  he  could  have 
"Mademoiselle  de  Vendome,"  he  flew  into  a  rage,  and  with 
characteristic  brutality  declared,  "  that  he  would  not  take  the 
King  of  Scotland's  refusings."  This  declaration  is  a  proof  that 
Lindsay  of  Pitscottie  is  mistaken  in  affirming  that  "  the  Duke  of 
Vendome's  daughter  took  sic  displeasour  at  the  King  of  Scotland's 
m.arriage  with  Magdalene  that  she  deceased  immediately  there- 
after, whereat  the  King  of  Scotland  was  heavily  displeased, 
thinking  he  was  the  occasion  of  that  gentlewoman's  death." 

James  entered  into  a  lover-like  correspondence  with  the  fair 
widow  of  Longueville,  and  after  many  letters  full  of  princely 
love  and  affection  had  been  exchanged  between  them,  the  articles 
of  marriage  were  agreed  on.^  The  King  of  France,  in  quality  of 
adopted  father  to  Mary,  gave  a  portion  similar  to  that  which  he 
had  one  short  year  before  bestowed  on  his  own  daughter  Magda- 
lene— namely,  a  hundred  thousand  crowns  of  the  Sun.^ 

In  the  original  draught  of  the  preliminary  aricles  of  the  "  Pro- 
ject du  Contract  de  Mariage,"  between  James  V.  of  Scotland 
and  Mary  of  Lorraine,  her  name  is  erroneously  set  down  Marga- 
ret, but  she  is  described  "  as  the  widow  of  the  late  Duke,  and 
mother  of  the  present  Duke  de  Longueville."  The  fortune  given 
by  her  father,  the  Duke  de   C4uise,  is  stated  to  be  at  her  sole 

^  Chronicle  of  Drummond  of  Hawtliornden.         ^  State  Papers  of  France, 


324  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

disposal,  and,  with  the  royal  portion  accorded  to  her  by  her 
sovereign,  the  most  Christian  King,  amounting  to  150,000  livres 
de  tournois.  She  is  willing  to  concede  to  her  future  spouse,  the 
King  of  Scotland,  as  her  dower,  and  to  pay  to  him,  or  his  procu- 
rators, on  the  day  of  the  solemnization  of  the  marriage-ceremony, 
100,000  of  the  said  livres  de  tournois  (which  are  in  all  other 
documents  described  as  crowns  of  the  Sun),  giving  security  for 
paying  the  other  50,000  on  the  anniversary  of  that  day.  James, 
on  his  part,  engages,  in  the  event  of  his  dying  first,  that  a  third 
of  this  sum  shall  be  repaid  to  her  if  she  brings  him  children  ;  but 
if  there  be  no  issue,  then  half  the  money  is  to  be  repaid  to  her,  or 
her  heirs  collateral.  It  is  especially  covenanted  on  behalf  of  the 
bride,  that  no  portion  of  King  James's  debts,  either  public  or 
personal,  are  to  fall  on  her  settlement ;  and  on  the  part  of  the 
bridegroom,  that  she  is  not  to  alienate,  or  carry  away,  any  of  the 
goods,  furniture,  or  ornaments  of  any  of  the  royal  palaces  of  her 
said  lord,  the  King  of  Scotland.  She  stipulates  for  jewels,  rings, 
and  all  suitable  decorations,  being  granted  to  her  in  number  and 
value  as  shall  be  considered  meet  by  her  commissioners. 

King  James  agrees  to  jointure  her  with  a  noble  appanage  in 
his  realm,  which  she  is  to  enjoy,  after  his  death,  for  her  sole  and 
separate  use  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  county  of  Fife,  with  the  fair 
palace  of  Falkland  garnished  and  fitted  up  with  all  proper  furni- 
ture decorations  and  utensils,  for  the  term  of  her  natural  life, 
whether  she  brings  him  children  or  not.  Furthermore,  he  dowers 
her  in  the  county  of  Strath  earn,  the  palaces  of  Stirling  and  Ding- 
wall, the  county  of  Ross,  the  lordships  of  Galloway,  Orkney,  and 
the  Isles  ;  and,  whether  she  please  to  reside  in  Scotland  or  return 
to  France,  she  is  to  enjoy  all  the  revenues  derivable  from  this 
magnificent  jointure  without  let  or  hindrance.^ 

On  the  22d  of  April,  Mary  of  Lorraine  writes  to  the  Chancellor 
of  France,  thanking  him  for  all  the  good  services  he  had  rendered 
her  in  her  business.  She  begs  him  to  have  the  guard  of  honor, 
which  it  had  pleased  the  King  to  give  her,  speedily  sent,  because 
she  could  not  be  espoused  till  that  matter  was  arranged. 

^  Preserved  in  the  Archives  du  Royaiime  de  France  (Tresors  des  Chartes, 
J.  680,  r.  78).  Printed  in  the  original  French,  in  an  unpublislied  volume, 
for  the  use  of  the  Bannatyne  Club,  of  which  I  have  been  favored  with  the 
use  by  that  distinguished  antiquary,  T.  Thomson,  Esq.,  of  Shrub  Hill,  Leith. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  325 

She  signs  this  letter  ah-eady  in  the  royal  style — "  Your  good 
friend,  Marie  ;"  ^  and  it  is  written  at  Chasteaudun. 

King  James's  ambassadors,  for  the  conclusion  of  this  his  second 
matrimonial  treaty  with  France,  were  the  Lord  Maxwell,  the 
Lord  Erskine,  and  Cardinal  David  Baton,  Archbishop  of  St. 
Andrews.  In  consequence  of  Mary  of  Lorraine's  kindred  with 
James,  through  their  mutual  descent  from  the  ducal  house  of 
Gueldres,  as  well  as  her  near  relationship  to  the  late  Glueen 
Magdalene,  a  dispensation  from  the  Pope  was  necessary.  The 
expenses  of  the  journey  for  procuring  this  instrument,  &c.,  are 
noted  in  the  Exchequer  records  of  Scotland  at  two  hundred 
crowns.  Sixty  crowns  are  also  disbursed,  on  this  occasion,  "in 
fees  to  Buchoel,  and  other  secretaries  of  the  King  of  France,  for 
the  contract  of  the  King's  Grace's  marriage."  ^  These  items  are 
quickly  followed  by  that  of  "  ane  ring  with  ane  diamond,  to  be 
the  dueen's  Grace's  spousing  ring,"  which  costs  three  hundred 
crowns..  Then  there  is  the  entry  of  "forty  crowns,  fees  to  officers 
and  minstrels  the  day  of  the  Q^ueen's  marriage  at  Chasteaudun." 
This,  however,  only  means  the  ratification  of  the  matrimonial 
articles  ;  for  all  accounts  agree  that  the  grand  ceremonial  of  her 
marriage,  by  King  James's  proxy,  the  Lord  Maxwell,  was  sol- 
emnized with  great  pomp  in  the  church  of  Notre  Dame,  at  Paris, 
in  the  presence  of  the  King  of  France,  her   parents   and  kindred. 

There  is  a  beautiful  historical  painting  of  this  ceremonial  in 
the  collection  of  the  Earl  of  Elgin,  at  Broomhall,  in  Fifeshire, 
representing  Mary  of  Lorraine  m  the  act  of  giving  her  hand  to 
Lord  Maxwell,  the  gray-haired  proxy  of  the  gay  and  gallant 
James  V.  of  Scotland.^  She  is  represented  in  this  picture  as 
very  handsome,  with  a  classic  line  of  features  and  fair  complexion, 

^  MS.  J.  965,  1.  Archives  du  Royaume  de  France. 

"^  Compotum  Davidis,  Sancti  Andreae  Archiepiscopi,  (fcc,  in  Regno 
Franciae,  kindly  communicated  by  Alexander  Macdonald,  Esq. 

^  This  group  forms  the  subject  of  the  vignette  on  the  title-page  of  the 
present  volume  of  our  royal  biographies,  the  noble  possessor  having  cour- 
teously allowed  it  to  be  copied  and  engraved  for  that  purpose,  for  which 
our  acknowledgments  are  gratefully  offered,  as  well  as  for  the  like  privilege 
accorded  by  his  Lordship  in  regard  to  the  portrait  of  Queen  Magdalene, 
from  the  companion  picture.  Both  these  fine  historical  pieces  originally 
decorated  the  royal  gallery  of  the  Luxembourg,  and  were  purchased,  after 
the  Revolution  at  Paris,  by  that  celebrated  connoisseur  in  the  fine  arts,  the 
late  Earl  of  Elgin. 


326  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

blue  eyes  and  golden  hair.  Her  figure  is  tall  and  commanding, 
but  feminine,  with  the  characteristic  length  of  throat  which  is 
observable  in  her  other  portraits.  Her  dress  greatly  resembles 
that  of  her  youthful  predecessor,  Magdalene  of  France,  and  is  of 
the  like  material — white  silk  brocaded  with  gold. 

Mary  of  Lorraine,  though  perseveringly  wooed  by  two  kings, 
had  waited  to  complete  her  year  of  widowhood,  before  she  would 
allow  her  finger  to  be  encircled  by  the  spousal  ring  of  a  second 
husband.  Her  royal  lord,  King  James,  lacked  a  month  of  paying 
the  like  complimentary  mark  of  respect  to  the  memory  of  his  first 
consort ;  but  he  was  probably  apprehensive  of  being  supplanted 
by  his  uncle  Henry  VIII.,  unless  he  took  prompt  steps  for  secur- 
ing a  bride  who  was  so  passionately  coveted  by  that  powerful 
monarch.  There  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  Mary  wavered  for 
an  instant  in  her  choice  between  the  rival  Albion  Kings.  For- 
tunately for  her,  her  duty  to  her  country  and  her  native  sovereign, 
prescribed  that  she  should  become  the  wife  of  the  youngest,  the 
handsomest,  and  the  most  agreeable  of  the  twain.  Had  she  been 
crafty  and  ambitious,  as  some  historians  have  painted  her,  she 
would  have  chosen  the  most  powerful,  and  rejected  the  matrimo- 
nial diadem  of  Scotland  for  the  more  brilliant  destiny  of  a  Glueen- 
consort  of  England.  But  Mary  avoided  the  glittering  snare,  and 
kept  her  faith  to  her  royal  Scotch  lover  inviolate.  More  impor- 
tant results  than  her  own  personal  aggrandizement,  or  her  own 
private  happiness,  were  involved  in  her  decision.  If  she  had 
married  Henry,  it  is  very  possible  that  descendants  of  hers  by 
that  monarch  might  now  have  been  on  the  throne  of  England, 
instead  of  her  posterity  by  James — but  in  how  inferior  a  position  ! 
The  consolidation  of  the  realms  of  England,  Ireland,  and  Scotland, 
in  the  strong  unity  of  the  triune  empire  of  Great  Britain,  resulted 
from  the  failure  of  the  line  of  Henry  VIII.,  who  by  six  wives  left 
only  three  children,  all  of  whom  died  without  posterity.  But  if 
the  fruitful  Mary  of  Lorraine  had  filled  the  place  subsequently 
given  successively  to  three  childless  (olueens — Anne  of  Cleves, 
Katharine  Howard,  and  Katharine  Parr,  the  Tudor  succession 
would  in  all  human  probability  have  been  continued.  England 
and  Scotland  would,  in  that  case,  have  remained  under  separate 
rulers,  rivals  and  hereditary  foes,  rending  each  other  like  jealous 
bloodhounds,  with  profitless  ferocity,  instead  of  rising  to  national 
prosperity  and  greatness  through  a  community  of  interests,  and 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  327 

the  commercial  relations  with  the  rest  of  the  world,  which  were 
established  by  the  sovereigns  of  the  much  vituperated  name  of 
Stuart, — sovereigns  in  whom  the  elder  royal  line  of  those  philo- 
sophical legislators,  Alfred  and  Athelstane,  was  in  the  fullness  of 
time  replaced  on  the  throne  of  England,  bringing  the  once  hostile 
realm  of  Scotland  as  their  most  rightful  and  righteously  acquired 
inheritance  ;  sovereigns  who,  eschewing  the  popular  but  fatal 
amusement  of  Continental  warfare,  sedulously  cultivated  peace 
as  a  science,  and  planted  extensive  colonies  in  all  quarters  of  the 
world,  as  safety-valves  for  carrying  off  the  surplus  population 
which  their  pacific  legislation  encouraged. 

Henry  VIII.  was  so  exasperated  at  the  preference  shown  by 
Mary  for  his  nephew  of  Scotland,  that,  when  requested  to  grant 
permission  for  her  to  land  on  the  coast  of  England,  in  the  event 
of  her  encountering  stormy  weather  on  her  passage  from  France 
to  Scotland,  he  most  ungraciously  refused  it.  King  James,  warned 
by  this  manifestation  of  hostility,  sent  a  strong  fleet  and  numer- 
ous escort  to  convey  his  bride,  and  took  the  precaution  of  employ- 
ing a  vessel  to  survey  the  English  coast  before  her  embarkation. 

The  parents  and  haughty  kindred  of  Mary  were  much  elated 
at  a  marriage  which  exalted  her  to  the  rank  of  a  crowned  head ; 
but  to  her  it  involved  a  sacrifice  which  could  not  be  otherwise 
than  very  painful  to  the  heart  of  a  young  mother,  that  of  a  sep- 
aration from  her  first-born  and  only  surviving  child,  the  little 
Duke  de  Longueville,  who  was  between  two  and  three  years  old 
— a  most  attractive  age.  It  was  probably  the  idea  of  this  separ- 
ation which  had  rendered  her  reluctant  to  entering  into  a  second 
marriage,  since  to  the  handsome  and  accomplished  King  of  Scot- 
land she  could  plead  no  objection. 

After  the  spousal  ceremonial  had  been  solemnized,  Mary  was 
entitled  Q.ueen  of  Scotland,  and  was  formally  consigned  to  the 
care  and  keeping  of  the  Lord  Maxwell,  King  James's  proxy. 
Attended  by  a  distinguished  company  of  French  nobles,  and  the 
guard  of  honor  which  had  been  assigned  her  by  her  own  sover- 
eign, she  traveled  from  Paris  to  Dieppe  with  all  the  state  of 
Q,ueen  of  Scotland.^  Annebaut,  the  Admiral  of  France,  had 
commission  to  attend  her  with  a  French  convoy,  which  joined  the 
Scotch  fleet  in  the  jSTew  Haven  at  Dieppe.     There  Mary  took 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     State  Papers  of  France. 


328  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

leave  of  the  friends  of  lier  youth,  and  embarked  with  her  royal 
retinue  for  her  new  country.  According  to  some  authorities,  be- 
sides being  disquieted,  at  her  embarkation,  by  a  fierce  quarrel  be- 
tween the  representative  of  her  august  consort.  Lord  Maxwell,  and 
Cardinal  Beton,  the  favorite  and  prime-minister  of  that  Prince, 
the  royal  bride  encountered  a  severe  storm  at  sea.  Lindsay  of 
Pitscottie,  who  records  the  dispute,  says  nothing  of  the  strife  of 
winds  and  waves  ;  on  the  contrary,  we  should  infer  that  the  pas- 
sage was  swift  and  prosperous,  from  his  statement  that,  "  as  soon 
as  wind  served,  he  (Lord  Maxwell)  shipped  the  Gtueen,  and  syne 
pulled  up  sails,  and  sailed  to  Scotland  the  nearest  way.  But,  be- 
cause the  Cardinal  got  no  charge  in  the  (iueen's  home-coming, 
and  was  not  letten  in  the  ship  with  her,  he  was  discontented  with 
the  Lord  Maxwell,  the  Admiral,  quhilk  gendered  hatred  there- 
after. Also  the  Gtueen  landit  very  pleasant  in  a  part  of  Fife 
called  Fifeness,  near  Balcomie."  ^ 

The  honest  naval  peer,  who,  invested  with  the  twofold  dignity 
of  King's  Proxy  and  Admiral  of  the  fleet,  found  himself  in  circum- 
stances to  enforce  his  authority  by  compelling  the  haughty  pri- 
mate to  submit  to  his  arrangements  for  the  voyage,  had  doubtless 
seen  sufficient  reason  for  this  bold  endeavor  to  preserve  his  royal 
mistress — at  least  for  the  time  she  remained  under  his  charge — 
from  the  pernicious  influence  which  the  subtile  ecclesiastic  finally 
succeeded  in  obtaining  over  her  mind,  as  well  as  that  of  King 
James. 

It  is  worthy  of  observation,  however,  that  Sir  David  Lindsay  of 
the  Mount,  the  venerable  cotemporary  to  whom  Pitscottie  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  indebted  for  most  of  his  information  on  the 
matrimonial  affairs  of  James  Y.,  makes  no  allusion  to  the  affront 
the  Cardinal  received  on  this  occasion,  in  his  tragic  historical 
poem  on  that  statesman,  where  he  makes  him  give  the  following 
boastful  account  of  his  proceedings  : — "^ 

"  Through  me  were  made  triumphant  marriages. 
That  to  King  James  brought  profit  and  pleasance, 
When  Magdalen  our  Queen,  first  daughter  of  France, 
With  riches  great  was  into  Scotland  brought ; 
After  whose  death,  to  France  I  passed  again, 

'■  Chronicles  of  Scotland,  p.  375. 

'  See  Tragedy  of  the  Cardinal,  Poems  of  David  Lindsay,  p.  254. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  329 

The  second  Queen  homeward  I  did  convoy, 
That  lovely  Princess  Mary  of  Lorraine, 
Who  was  received  with  great  triumph  and  joy — 
So  served  I  our  right  renowned  Roy.'' 

The  day  on  which  Mary  of  Lorraine  landed  in  Scotland  was 
the  solemn  festival  of  Trinity  Sunday,  June  12,  1538,^  three  days 
after  the  anniversary  of  the  death  of  her  first  husband,  the  Duke 
de  Longueville.  Hearing  that  her  new  consort,  King  James,  was 
at  St.  Andrews,  the  distance  being  within  ten  miles,  slie  deter- 
mined to  repose  herself  at  Balcomie  Castle,  the  seat  of  James 
Laird  of  Learmont,  the  Master  of  the  royal  Household,  till  the 
couriers,  who  were  dispatched  to  announce  her  arrival  in  his 
dominions,  should  return  with  his  Majesty's  instructions.  But  the 
fifth  James  of  Scotland  was  not  a  prince  to  keep  a  lady  waiting 
Avhile  he  was  sending  messengers  with  ceremonial  greetings,  to 
allow  time  to  his  heralds  and  chamberlains  to  arrange  a  pro- 
gramme for  their  reception,  according  to  the  formal  solemnity  of 
courtly  etiquette.  The  moment  he  heard  the  good  tidings  that 
she  was  so  near,  he  called  to  horse,  and  with  all  his  peers,  spir- 
itual as  well  as  temporal — who  had  previously  been  convened 
"  to  meet  at  St.  AndrcAvs  in  their  best  array,"  to  do  their  devoir 
to  their  new  queen — rode  forth  incontinent  to  give  her  personal 
welcome,  and  bring  her  on  to  that  city. 

The  interval  of  three  or  four  hours  which  must  necessarily 
have  passed  over  before  the  gallant  bridegroom,  however  prompt 
in  his  movements,  could  arrive  at  Balcomie  Castle,  afibrded  the 
bride  opportunity  for  rest,  refreshment,  and  the  performance  of  a 
toilet  suitable  to  so  interesting  an  occasion  as  her  first  meeting 
with  her  old  acquaintance  King  James,  in  the  character  of  his 
consort,  to  be  followed  by  her  public  entrance,  as  dueen  of  Scot- 
land, into  the  polite  city  of  St.  Andrews,  which  was  then  regarded 
as  a  far  more  civilized  place  than  Edinburgh,  being  the  seat  of 
the  arts  and  sciences,  learning  and  poetry.  Much  is  it  to  be 
regretted  that  no  existing  records  enable  us  to  gratify  our  fair 
readers  with  the  precise  details  of  the  dress  of  Mary  of  Lorraine, 
on  that  important  day  of  her  life.  The  Treasury  accounts  of 
Scotland,  however,  bear  witness  that  the  King  bought  anent  his 

^  Buchanan's  Hist,  of  Scotland.  Diurnal  of  Occurrents.  Balfour  says  she 
landed  at  Crail,  June  19.     Annals  of  Scotland. 


330  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

marriage  with  the  lovely  widow,  "  ane  hat  thrummit  with  gold," 
which  cost  the  King's  Grace  eight  crowns.  It  was  decorated 
Mdth  certain  "  hostage  feeler W  (ostrich  feathers),  costing  him 
three  crowns,  likewise  with  "  ane  image  with  ane  rubie  to 
the  King's  Grace's  bonnet."  There  is  also  an  entry  "  for  two 
ells  and  a  half  of  quhite  claitli  to  lay  between  the  folds  of  the 
coat  of  Venice  satin,  rich  with  silver,  of  the  King's  Grace." 
The  price  of  the  "  quhite  claith,"  which  was  only  some  sort  of 
tailor's  lining,  was  but  2s.  Scots  the  ell  ;  but  it  serves  to  eluci- 
date the  fact  that  the  gallant  James  wore  for  his  wedding-coat 
white  Venice  satin,  enriched  with  silver  embroidery.^ 

That  pleasant  chronicler,  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  gives  the  fol- 
lowing rich  details  of  the  reception  of  this  Q,ueen  (Mary)  at  St. 
Andrews,  and  some  of  the  pageants  and  entertainments  that  were 
devised  and  performed  to  do  her  honor.  "  And  first,  she  was 
received  at  the  New  Abbey  gate  ;  upon  the  east  side  thereof 
there  was  made  to  her  a  triumphant  arch,  by  Sir  David  Lindsay 
of  the  Mount,  Lion  Herald,  which  caused  a  great  cloud  come 
out  of  the  heavens  above  the  gate,  and  open  instantly  ;  and  there 
appeared  a  fair  lady  most  like  an  angel,  having  the  keys  of  Scot- 
land in  her  hands,  and  delivered  them  to  the  Glueen,  in  sign  and 
token  that  all  the  hearts  of  Scotland  were  open  to  receive  her 
Grace  ;  with  certain  orations  and  exhortations  made  by  the  said 
David  Lindsay  to  the  Gtueen,  instructing  her  to  serve  her  God 
and  obey  her  husband,  according  to  God's  will  and  command- 
ments. This  being  done,  the  Q.ueen  was  received  into  her  palace, 
which  was  called  the  New  Inns,  which  was  well  decored  against 
her  coming.  Also  the  bishops,  abbots,  priors,  monks,  friars,  and 
canons-regular,  made  great  solemnity  in  the  kirk,  with  masses, 
Bongs,  and  playing  of  the  organs." 

In  the  same  kirk — the  then  magnificent  Abbey  Church  or 
Cathedral  of  St.  Andrews — the  marriage  of  the  royal  pair  was 
publicly  solemnized  and  affirmed,  in  the  presence  of  the  nobles 
and  people  of  Scotland.^  This  event  is  recorded  by  a  cotempo- 
rary  chronicler  in  these  words, — "  And  there  the  King's  Grace 
and  the  said  Marie  were  spousit  with  great  glory,  where  the 

1  Royal  Records  in  the  General  Register  House,  kindly  communicated  by 
Alexander  Macdonald,  Esq. 

^  Lesley,  Hist,  of  Scotland,  James  Fyft.    Buchanan. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  331 

Archbishop  of  Glasgow,  and  many  of  the  noblemen  of  Scotland, 
were  present." 

What  a  contrast  to  the  mournful  desolation  to  which  the 
despoiled  and  shattered  remains  of  the  fair  cathedral  are  now 
reduced,  must  have  been  its  appearance  on  the  memorable  festival 
of  the  Holy  Trinity,  1538,  when  that  goodly  pair,  James  Y.  and 
his  second  French  bride,  were  brought  in  solemn  procession 
through  the  great  western  entrance  up  the  central  aisle  to  the 
high  altar,  for  the  confirmation  of  the  proxy  marriage  which  had 
been  previously  celebrated  in  the  church  of  Notre  Dame  !  ^ 

It  is  scarcely  possible  for  the  historical  pilgrim  to  enter  the 
grass-grown  arena  of  ruins,  where  once  the  stately  Abbey  of 
St.  Andrews  rose  in  its  august  beauty,  without  moralizing  on  the 
changes  that  have  varied  the  features  of  the  place  since  the 
Culdee  missionary,  St.  Regulus,  in  the  fourth  century,  first  planted 
a  Christian  church  on  the  wild  sea-clifF  of  the  then  barbarous 
location,  which  subsequently  became  the  focus  whence  learning 
and  gospel  light  irradiated  the  heathen  darkness  of  Scotland. 
II  that  venerable  tower  which  bears  the  name,  and  forms  the 
sole  surviving  monument  of  its  founder — and,  like  some  indomi- 
table chieftain  of  the  olden  time,  proudly  maintains  his  ground 
in  a  lost  battle,  when  the  younger  and  fairer  brethren  of  the  host 
he  commanded  lie  scattered  in  the  dust  around  him,  could  find  a 
voice  or  pen  to  declare  his  reminiscences,  what  lights  would  break 
in  upon  many  a  dim  and  doubtful  page  of  royal  history  I  But 
as  biographers  are  not  warranted  in  overstepping  the  bounds 
of  their  documentary  evidences,  it  is  not  for  us  to  call  up  spirits 
from  the  vasty  deep  of  past  time,  by  repeopling  the  fallen  nave, 
aisles,  and  galleries  with  gorgeous  groups  of  the  high  and  mighty 
of  the  land — the  Saxon  and  the  Gael — who  were  that  day 
mingled  with  the  burghers  and  loving  commonalty  of  St.  An- 
drews to  witness  the  nuptials  of  their  King  ;  much  less  may  we 
describe  the  brave  attire  and  jcAveled  pomp  of  the  fair  and  noble 
ladies,  both  Scotch  and  French,  who  graced  the  procession  of  the 
queenly  bride  :  but  this  at  least  we  may  say,  that  such  visions 
of  purple  and  of  pall,   such  cloth-ot-gold,  plumes,  banners,  and 

1  The  reader  who  is  unacquainted  with  the  local  scene  described,  is  re- 
ferred to  the  learned  and  most  interesting  History  of  St.  Andrews,  by  the 
Rev.  C.  Lyon,  for  full  particulars. 


332  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

blazonry,  can  never  be   seen  in  old  St.  Andrews  again,  save  in 
poetic  retrospect  of  her  departed  splendor. 

When  the  royal  pair  had  received  the  nuptial  benediction  from 
Cardinal  Beton,  the  Glueen  retired  with  her  ladies  to  change 
her  dress,  in  preparation  for  the  public  banquet ;  and  the  King 
withdrew  with  his  lords-in-waiting  for  the  same  purpose.  Ac- 
cording to  old  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  we  find  that  "  the  King 
received  the  Glueen  in  his  palace  to  dinner,  where  was  great 
mirth  all  day,  till  time  of  supper.  On  the  morn,  the  dueen 
passed  through  the  town  :  she  saw  the  Blackfriars,  the  Gray- 
friars,  the  old  college  and  the  new  college,  and  St.  Leonards  ;  she 
saw  the  provosts  of  the  town  and  honest  burgesses  :  and  when- 
the  dueen  came  to  her  palace,  and  met  with  the  King,  she  con^ 
fessed  unto  him  'that  she  never  saw  in  France,  nor  no  other 
country,  so  many  goodly  faces  in  so  little  room,  as  she  saw  that 
day  in  Scotland  ;  for,'  she  said,  '  it  was  shown  unto  her  in  France 
that  Scotland  was  but  a  barbarous  country,  destitute  and  void  of 
all  good  commodities  that  used  to  be  in  other  countries,  but  now 
she  confessed  she  saw  the  contrary  ;  for  she  never  saw  so  many 
fair  personages  of  men,  women,  young  babes,  and  children,  as 
she  saw  that  day.'  At  these  words  of  the  Glneen  the  King 
greatly  rejoiced,  and  said  to  her,  '  Forsooth,  madam,  you  shall 
see  better,  please  God.  Ere  you  go  through  Scotland,  you  will 
see  many  good-like  men  and  women,  with  other  commodities 
that  will  be  to  your  contentment.'  " 

Mary  did  not,  however,  if  we  may  credit  the  report  made  by  Ma- 
dame Montrieul,  the  governess  of  her  predecessor,  the  late  Glueen 
Magdalene,  express  herself  quite  so  favorably  to  that  lady  of  her 
new  country  as  she  did  to  King  James.  Madame  Montrieul, 
with  eight  other  French  dames  and  maids-of-honor  of  dueen 
Magdalene's  household,  had  remained  with  honorable  entertain- 
ment at  the  Court  of  Scotland  from  the  time  of  their  royal  mis- 
tress' demise,  till  the  arrival  of  James's  second  consort,  when 
they  were  all  prudently  dismissed.  Passing  through  England  on 
their  way  home,  they  took  the  opportunity  of  visiting  London,  when, 
being  questioned  by  one  of  Henry  VIIL's  officers  "  how  the  new 
Q.ueen  liked  Scotland,"  Madame  de  Montrieul  somewhat  smiled  as 
she  answered  that "  the  Q.ueen  of  Scotland  loved  France  the  best."  ^ 

^  Ellis's  Letters,  first  aeries,  vol.  i.  p.  109. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  333 

Henry  VIII.  had  certainly  the  wish  to  make  Mary  of  Lorraine 
regret  her  refusal  of  him  and  acceptance  of  his  nephew;  for 
when  these  ladies  were  in  London  he  had  them  paid  the  utmost 
attention,  in  expectation  that  they  would  report  the  superior  riches 
and  beauty  of  England  when  they  wrote  to  the  Court  of  Scot- 
land. The  Lord  Mayor  was  ordered  to  provide  them  with  ten 
great  carps,  ten  great  eels,  ten  great  pikes,  a  portion  of  salmon 
and  sturgeon,  a  certain  quantity  of  tenches  and  breams,  and  all 
the  good  fishes  that  could  be  gotten,  with  ten  sugar  loaves,  ten 
wax  torches,  and  white  wine  and  claret  in  abundance  at  their 
dinners  and  suppers.^  They  were  to  be  lodged  at  the  Lord 
Mayor's;  but  St.  Bartholomew's  fair  being  so  near,  there  M'^as  no 
room  for  them.  However,  a  meet  lodging  was  provided,  and  a 
great  banquet  made  for  their  entertainment,  to  v/hich  was  invited 
the  French  ambassador.  In  return  for  all  these  attentions,  the 
French  lady  was  very  communicative  to  the  gentleman  sent  by 
Henry  YIII.  to  carry  her  his  greetings,  and  informed  him  all  he 
asked  concerning  the  death  of  (dueen  Magdalene,  and  the  arrival 
of  Mary  of  Lorraine.  There  is  no  doubt  but  Madame  de  Mon- 
trieul  would  have  preferred  the  Court  of  the  uncle  to  that  of  the 
nephew;  for  she  descanted  eloquently  on  the  fruitfuhiess  and 
fairness  of  England,  the  civility  of  the  men,  and  the  splendor  of 
the  palaces,  commending  Bridewell  to  the  French  ambassador 
above  all  she  had  ever  seen.  The  ambassador  had  promised  that 
she  should  see  York  Place  (Whitehall  Palace),  which  was  far 
fairer,  and  for  that  intent  he  sent  to  the  keeper  of  the  same. 
Madame  de  Montrieul  said  "  that  she  had  a  message  from  the 
Q,ueen  of  Scotland  to  the  King  of  England,  if  she  happened  to 
arrive  at  the  speech  of  his  Grace."  ^  What  this  message  was 
has  never  transpired. 

The  mother-in-law  of  Mary  of  Lorraine,  dueen  Margaret,  had 
been  excessively  importunate  to  her  brother  Henry  VIII.  for  pres- 
ents on  the  occasion  of  the  royal  wedding,  but  in  vain  ;  she  could 
obtain  no  answer  from  England.  One  day,  however,  the  bride 
of  Scotland  thought  proper  to  ask  Margaret  "  whether  she  ever 
heard  from  her  brother,  the  King  of  England?"  The  question 
greatly  irritated  the  royal  dowager,  and  set  her  indefatigable  pen 
to  work  in  a  letter  of  remonstrance  to  her  brother,  which  is  in 

^  Ellis's  Letters,  first  series,  vol.  I  p.  107.  ^  Ibid. 


334  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

parts  illegible,  owing  apparently  to  Henry  having  carried  it  in 
some  letter-case  or  pocket-book  about  his  person.^  After  lament- 
ing the  length  of  time  since  she  had  heard  from  him,  dueen 
Margaret  proceeds  to  say  "that  James  V.,  her  dearest  son,  is  in 
good  health  and  prosperity,  that  there  is  great  love  between  him 
and  the  Q.ueen  his  wile,  and  great  honor  done  her  ;  and  she,  the 
new  Glueen,  is  right  richly  become  into  this  realm,  having  good 
friends  who  have  looked  greatly  to  her  honor." 

Henry  VHI.  was  to  receive  this  intimation  as  a  gentle  rebuke 
for  his  churlish  niggardliness  to  his  own  sister  and  her  son  on  the 
occasion  of  the  wedding,  but  nothing  else  could  be  expected  from 
a  rejected  man.  Margaret  probably  was  kept  in  profound  igno- 
rance of  this  passage  in  the  history  of  her  brother  and  her 
daughter-in-law,  or  else,  devoid  of  all  tact  as  she  was,  she  could 
not  have  dM'-elt  on  the  married  affection  of  James  V.  and  Mary 
of  Lorraine  in  the  way  she  does  here. 

"  I  trust  that  she  shall  prove  a  wise  Princess.  Your  Grace  shall  under- 
stand that,  since  her  coming  in  this  realm,  I  have  been  much  in  her  company, 
and  she  bears  her  very  favorably  to  me,  with  as  good  entreatment  as  may 
be,  and  hearty.  And  she  asked  at  me, '  when  I  heard  any  word  out  of  your 
realm  from  your  Grace  V  I  said  '  it  was  but  short  time  since  I  heard  from 
you.' 

"  Now,  dearest  brother,  since  there  is  here  another  Princess  than  I  (your 
only  sister),  I  beseech  your  Grace  that  it  may  be  seen  and  understood  that 
you  will  be  kind  and  loving  brother  to  me,  for  that  will  be  great  reason  to 
the  King  my  son  to  do  the  like."  ^ 

The  royal  records  of  Scotland  bear  witness  that  the  Glueen- 
mother  received  from  her  son  the  gift,  on  occasion  of  his  mar- 
riage, of  two  hundred  crowns,  under  the  following  notation — 
"  Item,  deliverit  the  penult  day  of  June  to  the  Q^ueenis  Grace, 
the  King's  Grace's  dearest  mother,  ii<^  cronis."  The  next  article 
notes,  on  July  28,  "  Forty  crowns  were  deliverit  to  the  auld 
Q,ueen's  nurise,  at  the  King's  command."  ^  The  gift  of  two  hun- 
dred crowns  had  evidently  not  satisfied  the  wants  or  wishes  of 
Glueen  Margaret's  Grace.  It  is  possible  the  deceased  young 
Magdalene  may  be  designated  as  the  "  auld  Glueen." 

King  James  and  his  new  Gtueen  prolonged  their  sojourn  at  St. 
Andrews  nearly  a  fortnight  beyond  their  honeymoon,  for  they 

^  State  Paper  Office.         ^  State  Papers.         ^  Compotus  of  St.  Andrews. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  335 

tarried  in  that  festive  city  forty  days,  "  with  great  merriness  and 
games,  jousting,  running  at  the  lists,  archery,  hunting,  hawking, 
dancing,  and  masking,  with  all  other  princely  disportes." 

Very  curious  cotemporary  portraits  of  this  royal  pair  are  pre- 
served in  the  historical  gallery  of  his  Grace  the  Duke  of  Devon- 
shire, at  HardAvick  Hall.  They  are  represented  in  the  same  piece, 
seated  side  by  side  in  the  front  of  one  of  those  open  balconies  of 
state  in  which  personages  of  their  rank  were  accustomed  to  look 
down  upon  the  jousts  and  games  that  were  performed  for  their 
amusement.  The  King  rests  his  hand  on  a  large  tasseled  cush- 
ion, checked  with  gold  ;  the  Glueen  hers  on  one  of  purple  velvet. 
Their  armorial  bearings  are  impaled  in  front  of  the  balcony. 
Beneath  the  King  is  the  inscription — "  Jacobus  quintus  Scotorum 
Rex,  sBtatis  suae  28  ;"  under  the  Glueen — "  Maria  de  Lotharingse, 
in  secundis  nuptiis  uxor,  anno  setatis  suae  24."  This  date  certi- 
fies that  the  portraits  were  painted  while  they  were  bride  and 
bridegroom.  They  were  dressed,  according  to  the  etiquette  of 
royalty  under  such  circumstances,  in  the  same  colors,  and  almost 
in  the  same  fashion  ;  for  the  front  of  the  King's  dress  is  cut 
square  on  the  breast,  to  show  a  finely-plaited  shirt,  which  resem- 
bles the  Q^ueen's  chemisette,  and  is  finished  with  a  jeweled  band. 
Moreover,  his  Majesty's  sleeves  are  slashed  and  purfled  below  the 
elbows,  precisely  to  correspond  with  those  of  his  (iueen,  and  he 
wears  pearl  beads,  though  not  in  such  profusion.  Both  are  in 
regal  mantles  furred  with  miniver.  Her  golden  hair  is  tucked 
up  under  a  little  round  French  cap  or  hood,  formed  of  rows  of 
white  plaiting  and  coronal  circlets  of  gems.  Some  of  her  pictures 
have  been  mistaken  for  those  of  her  daughter,  especially  those 
where  the  shortness  of  the  upper  lip  amounts  even  to  a  defect, 
being,  as  in  this  portrait,  too  close  to  the  nose  for  the  harmony  of 
just  proportion.  The  royal  escutcheon  of  Scotland,  surmounted 
with  two  banners  charged  with  the  lion  of  that  realm,  is  embla- 
zoned above  in  the  center  of  the  double  portrait.  James  is,  as 
usual,  very  handsome  and  graceful,  bearing  a  strong  resemblance 
to  the  effigies  of  his  illustrious  ancestor,  Edward  HI.  Lesley 
gives  the  following  lively  description  of  the  person  and  characte- 
ristics of  James  :  "  He  was  a  man  of  personage  and  stature  con- 
venient, albeit  mighty  and  strong  therewith.  Of  countenance 
amiable  and  lovely,  specially  in  his  communication  [while  speak- 
ing] ;  his  eyes  gray,  and  sharp  of  sight,  that  whomsoever  he  did 


336  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

once  see  and  mark,  he  would  perfectly  know  in  all  times  there- 
after. Of  wit,  in  all  things  quick  and  prompt ;  of  a  princely 
stomach  and  high  courage  in  great  perils."  ^ 

Among  the  dramatic  representations  which  had  been  prepared 
by  the  courtly  bard  of  the  Reformation,  Sir  David  Lindsay  of  the 
Mount,  for  the  entertainment  of  the  royal  bride,  were  certain 
satirical  comedies,  castigating  the  abuses  of  that  church  of  which 
the  members  of  the  house  of  Guise  were  the  most  bigoted  cham- 
pions. Mary  of  Lorraine  and  her  illustrious  consort,  however, 
not  only  countenanced  the  pasquinades  by  their  presence,  but 
appeared  to  enjoy  them.^  Satires  thus  boldly  pointed  and  pub- 
licly sanctioned,  in  a  place  which,  for  the  last  fourteen  years,  had 
blazed  with  the  penal  fires  of  persecution,  denoted  the  spirit  of 
the  times ;  for  neither  royal  favor  nor  the  privileges  attached  to 
Sir  David  Lindsay's  office,  as  the  Lord  Lion  of  Scotland,  would 
have  protected  him  from  ecclesiastical  vengeance,  if  popular 
opinion  had  not  been  on  his  side.  The  spiritual  despotism  of  the 
hierarchy  of  that  period  had  exalted  itself  above  the  authority 
of  the  crown,  in  a  manner  peculiarly  offensive  to  the  monarch, 
as  interfering  with  the  exercise  of  his  highest  prerogative — mercy. 
On  the  memorable  occasion  when  David  Strahan,  being  con- 
demned to  the  flames  in  the  year  1534,  asked  the  King's  grace, 
which  James  V.,  who  was  present  at  his  condemnation,  would 
willingly  have  granted,  the  bishop,  insolently  interfering,  said, 
"  that  the  King's  hands  were  bound  in  that  case,  and  that  he 

1  Many  noble  virtues  also  does  this  loyal  cotemporary  impute  to  his  late 
lord,  without  mentioning  one  of  liis  failings.  These  unhappily  produced 
results  of  the  most  fatal  kind.  The  following  fact,  related  without  com- 
ment, by  Balfour,  speaks  volumes,  and  tells  more  against  the  sovereign  than 
all  the  vituperations  of  Knox  :  "  King  James  this  year  (1536)  likewise  gives 
to  his  four  base  sons  the  abbeys  and  priories  of  Melrose,  Kelso,  Colding- 
hame,  and  Holyrood  House."  The  eldest  of  those  illegitimate  scions  of 
royalty  w^as  but  eight  years  old.  Did  the  most  formidable  schismatic  ever 
inflict  so  deadly  a  wound  on  any  Church  as  imposing  such  incumbents  on 
her  offices  and  lands  ?  Lesley,  as  a  bishop  of  the  Church  whose  downfall 
the  vices  of  this  monarch  were  thus  preparing,  would  probably  have  drawn 
the  inference,  if  he  had  not  fettered  his  pen  by  dedicating  his  ffistory  of 
{Scotland  to  James's  royal  daughter,  Queen  Mary,  who  had  too  much  cause 
to  rue  her  father's  early  immoralities. 

^  Lives  of  the  Lindsays,  by  Lord  Lindsay. 


MARY     OF     LORP^AINE.  337 

had  no  grace  to  give  to  such  as  by  their  law  were  condemned  ;" 
and  the  barbarous  sentence  was  executed  in  despite  of  him.^ 

Though  Mary  of  Lorraine  was  not  James's  first  love,  he  was 
passionately  devoted  to  her.  Her  initials  M.  R.,  surmounted  with 
the  Fleur-de-Lys,  are  introduced  among  the  architectural  orna- 
ments of  all  his  royal  residences,  and  her  name  "  Marie,"  at  full 
length,  remains  embossed  in  surviving  characters  round  the  pi- 
lasters of  his  lovely  little  hunting  palace  at  Falkland,  as  a 
testimonial  of  his  regard  for  her.  This  gallant  inscription  was 
perhaps  made  by  James's  order  during  their  sojourn  at  that 
sylvan  retreat,  after  they  left  St.  Andrews  on  their  progress.^ 
From  Falkland,  James  conducted  his  royal  bride  to  Stirling, 
where  her  portraiture  was  long  recognized  among  the  basso- 
relievos  with  which  he  caused  the  ceiling  of  the  banqueting-room 
to  be  decorated.  After  spending  several  days  in  public  festivities 
at  Stirling,  the  royal  pair  proceeded  to  Linlithgow,  which  had 
been  prepared  and  beautified  for  the  reception  of  the  Q,ueen  at 
a  cost  of  four  hundred  crowns.^  Mary,  who  appears  to  have  been 
a  princess  of  good  taste,  expressed  her  admiration  of  the  exquisite 
gem  of  architecture,  declaring  "  she  never  saw  a  more  princely 
palace."  There  they  remained  two  or  three  days,  and  then  pro- 
ceeded to  Dundee,  where  the  Q,ueen  made  her  public  entrance, 
and  was  magnificently  treated  by  the  town.  On  the  5th  of 
August,  she  and  the  King  honored  with  their  presence  the  mar- 
riage of  the  Earl  of  Errol  with  the  sister  of  the  Earl  of  Len- 
nox. "At  St.  Johnston  (Perth),  every  man  of  them,"  continues 
Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  "  according  to  their  ability,  received  their 
Glueen  and  mistress  as  it  became  them  to  do." 

Meantime  it  seems  Mary's  privy  purse  ran  so  low  that  she  was 
under  the  necessity  of  anticipating  the  first  quarterly  payment  of 
her  income  as  Glueen  of  Scotland,  by  obtaining  of  the  King's 
treasurer  three  hundred  crowns  on  her  note  of  hand,  which  trans- 
action is  evidenced  in  the  following  entry  in  his  Compotus, — 
"  Item,  delivered  to  the  (Queen's  Grace,  upon  her  obligation  to 
render  it  again  betwixt  this  day  and  the  last  day  of  Sept.,  300 
crowns."       The    same    records    develop  various    amusing   little 

^  Knox's  History  of  the  Reformation,  edited  by  David  Laing,  Esq.,  vol. 
i.  p.  60. 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie. 

^  Treasury  Accounts  of  Scotland,  Register  House  MSS. 
VOL.  I. — P 


338  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

matters  connected  with  the  expenditure  of  this  Glueen,  illustrative 
of  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  court  of  Scotland,  as  well  as 
the  movements  of  the  royal  pair. 

All  the  historians  of  the  period  agree  that  Mary  of  Lorraine 
spent  the  first  year  of  her  marriage  with  James  V.  at  St.  An- 
drews, yet  the  entries  in  the  Compotus  prove  that  she  and  the 
King  were  constantly  changing  their  place  of  abode  from  one 
palace  to  another,  and  were  seldom  stationed  long  anywhere. 
Their  tapestry,  beds,  plate,  and  other  articles  of  furniture,  were 
generally  removed  at  the  same  time  for  their  use.  King  James 
being  possessed  of  more  houses  than  goods,  notwithstanding  the 
rich  plenishing  his  late  Q,ueen  Magdalene  brought  with  her  from 
France.  Mary  of  Lorraine  brought  little  in  comparison,  and 
among  those  we  notice  hangings  with  the  arms  of  Longueville, 
pertaining  to  her  late  husband. 

At  the  King's  great  hunting  at  Meggotland,  several  horse- 
loads  of  beds  were  brought  from  Peebles,  also  "the  tapestry  that 
lies  under  the  King  and  Q,ueen's  feet  from  Linlithgow  to 
Stirhng."  ' 

The  Treasurer  sent  to  Falkland  Palace,  Nov.  16,  ten  ells  of 
green  burge  satin,  to  be  ane  gown  to  Senat  the  Clueen's  fool. 
This  functionary  was  a  female  ;  for  the  next  article  enumerates 
"  14  ells  of  linen  claith  to  be  '  her  '  sarkis.  Violet  powder  pokes 
(bags),  to  lay  among  the  King's  claiths,"  cost  6  shillings  Scots. 
An  ell  and  a  quarter  of  purple  velvet  was  provided  to  be  "shoon" 
for  the  King's  Grace.  "  Ane  ell  of  purple  velvet  to  be  covering 
to  the  King's  book,  and  ane  poke  to  put  it  in."  Sewing  gold, 
cords,  fringes,  knobs,  and  borders,  are  charged  as  ornaments  to 
the  said  book  and  poke  to  put  in  ;   and  for  workmanship,  £3  19s. 

The  Glueen  was  likewise  provided  with  velvet-bound  books 
and  ornamental  "pokes  to  put  them  in."  The  King's  Compotus 
testifies  of  purple  velvet  delivered  to  Helen  Ross,  one  of  the 
(Queen's  ladies,  "to  cover  ane  matin  book  for  the  (iueen's  Grace, 
and  to  make  a  poke  to  put  it  in  of  the  same  ;  moreover,  she  had 
red  damask  to  line  the  said  poke.  David  Chapman  was  paid  ten 
shillings  for  binding  and  laying  about  the  said  matin  book  with 
gold.  Helen  Ross  was  given  eight  single  hanks  of  gold,  to  bor- 
der the  book,  and  the  poke,  and  knobs  thereto,  and  silk  to  string 

1  Eoyal  Records  in  the  Register  House,  Edinburgh. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  339 

the  poke  witli,  besides  costly  workmanship  to  the  amount  of  £3 
lOs.^ — all  which,  excepting  the  actual  binding,  was  done  by  the 
dueen's  lady. 

The  expenses  of  the  carriage  of  the  dueen's  wardrobe,  and 
those  of  her  gentlewomen,  give  the  intelligence  that  they  "  went 
furth  of  Falkland  to  Kirkaldy,  December  16,  after  the  dueen's 
marriage.  A  barn  was  hired  at  Kirkaldy  to  deposit  them  therein, 
and  two  men  had  wage  to  walk  the  same," — to  watch,  or  walk 
as  sentries,  at  the  barn  of  Kirkaldy.  Boats  were  hired  at  King- 
horn  to  ferry  the  (olueen's  wardrobe  over  the  water,  and  finally 
the  royal  party  settled  at  Stirling.  The  King  ordered  chains  of 
gold,  gold  rings,  tablets,  and  other  goldsmith's  work,  to  make  his 
Christmas  presents.  For  this  jewelry  he  paid  Thomas  Ryne, 
goldsmith,  £239  19s.;  besides  three  chains  and  two  hearts  of 
gold  for  further  New  Year's  gifts,  to  the  amount  of  £23.  The 
court  was  at  Linlithgow  a  month  afterward,  when  the  King 
sent  to  Edinburgh  for  a  coffer  of  silver  work,  and  other  gear,  to 
the  Laird  of  Dunnis  marriage. 

James  Y.,  at  Easter,  new-clothed  his  illegitimate  son,  James, 
the  boy  Prior  of  St.  Andrews,  afterward  Regent  of  Scotland,  with 
a  costly  gown  of  gray  Yenice  satin.  The  following  largesses  were, 
by  the  royal  command,  dispensed — "  To  Munsure  Laffenze,  the 
Francheman,  the  9th  day  of  March,  quhilk  came  first  in  Scotland 
after  Yule  fra  the  King  of  Franche,  in  ane  purse  knobbed  with 
gold,  £400  ;"  likewise  to  "Wlimsare  de  Moranvelay,  master  of 
the  household  to  the  Duke  of  Guise,  in  ane  other  silk  purse,  £300. 
Item,  for  the  twa  purses,  eight  shillings  ;  and  to  the  purse vant 
that  came  furth  of  France,  called  De  la  Plume,"  a  gift  of  £40.^ 

The  King's  juggler,  James  Atkinson,  was  presented,  by  royal 
warrant,  with  "  ane  coat  of  red  and  yellow  ;  price  of  the  red, 
dymmegrane,  23s.  per  ell^  and  of  the  yellow,  20s." 

There  are  items  of  expenses  disbursed,  by  royal  charity,  to 
"  puir  bedesmen  at  Pasche"  (Easter).  The  succeeding  March, 
the  King  and  Glueen  were  at  Stirling,  as  there  are  charges  for 
trussing  (packing)  and  sending  the  "  puir  bedesmen's  new  blue 
gowns  to  Striveling  ;"  and  there  the  royal  personages  must  have 
held  a  Maunday,  similar  to  the  charity  practiced  by  our  Glueen, 

1  Compotus,  Kirk.ildy  of  Grange,  favor  of  A.  Macdonald. 

2  Compotus  of  Kirkaldy  of  Grange. 


340  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

as  there  are  charges  for  money,  to  the  amount  of  £36  9s., 
•'  deliverit  to  the  maister-almoner  of  Striveling  Castle,  and  put  in 
litel  purses,  to  be  given  to  the  said  puir  bedesmen,  ilk  man  27s." 
In  the  merry  month  of  May,  the  Q,ueen  was  brought  to  bed, 
at  St.  Andrews,  of  a  prince,  to  the  great  joy  of  the  people  of 
Scotland.  King  James  triumphantly  announced  this  auspicious 
event  to  Henry  VIII.  in  the  following  letter  : — 

"  Right  excellent,  right  high  and  mighty  Prince,  our  dearest  Brother  and 
Uncle — We  commend  us  unto  you  in  our  most  hearty  and  effectuous  man- 
ner, signifying  unto  the  same,  that  since  it  has  liked  God,  of  his  great  good- 
ness, to  have  sent  unto  us,  this  22d  day  of  May  instant,  ane  son  and  prince, 
fair  and  life-like,  to  succeed  us  and  this  our  realm,  we  think  it  accords  us 
well  to  make  you  participant  with  us  of  sic  joyous  good  novellis,  and  that  we 
have  of  our  blood  to  this  our  realm,  which  may  hereafter  do  pleasure  to  you 
and  yours.  Right  excellent,  right  high  and  miglity  prince,  our  dearest  brother 
and  uncle,  we  pray  the  blessed  Trinity  to  conserve  you  in  long  life  and  pros- 
perous state.  Given  under  our  signet,  at  our  Abbey  of  Sanct  Androis,  the 
22d  day  of  May,  the  27th  year  of  our  regime."  ^ 

The  hills  of  Scotland,  by  the  joyful  blaze  of  their  beacons,  sent 
far  and  wide  over  England  the  tidings  that  an  heir  was  born  to 
the  northern  kingdom.  Many  a  bold  Borderer  on  the  English 
side  was  startled  into  M^arlike  preparation.  But  the  Duke  of  Nor- 
folk explained  to  the  English  Council,  "that  the  dueen  of  Scots 
bore  a  prince  on  the  Friday  last  past,  and  that  bonfires  were 
made  on  all  the  hills  on  the  Scottish  border,  which  burnt  in  sign 
of  rejoicing  through  Trinity  Sunday."^ 

The  royal  Compotus  bears  the  charge  of  £40  given  to  George 
Elphinstone  "  for  needful  expenses  when  sent  by  the  King  to  his 
royal  uncle,  Henry  VIIL  of  England,  with  news  of  the  birth  of 
my  lord  prince."^  George  was  evidently  the  bearer  of  the  fore- 
going epistle. 

The  christening  of  the  infant  heir  of  Scotland  was  celebrated 
with  great  triumph.     He  was  named  James.     David   Lindsay, 

^  Original  preserved  in  the  State  Paper  Office,  Westminster. 

'^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  p.  177.  Norfolk  to  the  English  Council,  May  25, 
the  current  date  being  1540.  But  we  are  forced  to  abide  by  the  date  of 
the  royal  James's  letter  herewith,  if  indeed  a  poet  may  be  trusted  with  a 
date. 

^  The  Compotus  likewise  bears  date  May  25,  1540.  As  the  second  boy- 
was  born  in  April  the  succeeding  year,  it  must  refer  to  the  eldest. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE,  341 

Lord  Lion,  and  Janet  Douglas  his  spouse,  "  "by  ane  precept,"  re- 
ceived on  the  occasion  the  large  donation  of  <£667,' — Sir  David 
certainly  for  proclamations  connected  w^ith  his  high  office  at  the 
ceremonial  and  ensuing  tournament ;  but  the  services  of  Janet, 
his  spouse,  are  not  so  easily  to  be  recognized.  John  Bog  brought 
to  St.  Andrews  fifteen  ells  of  v^^hite  taffety  to  be  serviettes  (towels) 
to  hold  the  torches  at  the  baptism  of  my  lord  prince.^  Thomas 
Cragie,  chaplain,  was  paid  £12  6s.  Sd.  lor  painting  the  armorial 
bearings  of  my  lord  prince  at  his  baptism. 

How  far  the  birth  of  that  new  and  proudly  welcomed  claimant 
of  her  love,  the  fair  young  Prince  of  Scotland,  consoled  Maiy  of 
Lorraine  for  the  continual  separation  from  her  first-born,  which 
her  marriage  with  King  James  had  imposed,  it  is  not  for  her  biog- 
raphers to  decide,  since  none  of  her  surviving  letters  unvail  the 
state  of  her  feelings  on  that  subject. 

The  rending  asunder  the  sweetest  ties  of  nature  are  among  the 
pains  and  penalties  to  which  queens  are  frequently  subjected,  and 
such  bereavements  are  no  less  terrible  to  them  than  to  mothers 
of  low  degree  ;  for  although  the  stern  restraints  with  which 
royalty  is  surrounded  may  compel  queens  to  do  violence  to  the 
tender  clinging  affections  of  woman's  heart,  they  can  not  extin- 
guish the  divine  instinct  which  pervades  the  feminine  portion  of 
the  creation,  from  the  lowest  link  of  insect  life  in  which  maternal 
solicitude  is  discernible — the  ant — up  to  the  last  and  most  per- 
fect of  God's  works  in  the  Garden  of  Eden,  the  sensitive  crea- 
ture whom  His  wisdom  called  into  existence  as  a  help  meet  for 
man. 

The  King  proclaimed  a  tournament  in  May,  in  which  he  per- 
sonally assisted,  for  notations  occur  in  the  royal  Compotus  that 
"the  children  of  his  stables"  (horse-boys)  received  a  gratuity  of 
forty  shillings,  the  day  "  the  King's  grace  ran  at  the  lists."  The 
royal  Stuart  more  worthily  celebrated  the  birth  of  his  heir  by 
some  judicious  charities  :  tiva  kye,  costing  forty  shillings,  were 
given  to  tiva  puir  women  of  Coivpar,  whose  husbands  had  been 
killed  by  accident. 

The  Glueen  paid   John  Tennant,  her  goldsmith,  for  making 

"  sindrie  chaffrons"  and  chains  of  gold,  to  the  amount  of  £63,  to 

give  away  among  the  ladies  of  her  household  at  the  end  of  May, 

evidently  on  occasion  of  the  birth  and  baptism  of  the  prince. 

1  Compotus.  2  Each  ell  cost  5  s. 


342  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

James  V.  made  a  tour  of  inspection  of  his  coasts,  sending  a  pre- 
cept at  the  end  of  May  to  Dumbarton,  that  boats  and  ships,  well- 
victualed,  might  be  sent  to  the  isles  to  meet  him  there.  He 
ordered  his  working  goldsmith,  Mossman,  to  convert  lour  ounces 
and  a  half  of  "gold  of  the  mine  into  ane  quhissel,"  which  whis- 
tle was  at  that  time  the  emblem  of  supreme  command  in  naval 
affairs  ;  it  was  to  have  ane  dragon  enameled  thereon,  and  weigh 
the  weight  he  ordered,  "unicorn  weight." 

The  (olueen  was  terribly  alarmed  by  prevalent  reports  that  the 
King,  who  had  sailed  from  Dumbarton  on  one  of  his  famous  sur- 
veying voyages  in  the  middle  of  June,  had  been  lost  in  one  of  the 
violent  tempests  which  prevailed  throughout  July.  Just  as 
alarm  was  at  its  height,  the  royal  mariner  made  safely  the  haven 
of  a  village  near  St.  Andrews.  Hearing  of  the  anguish  of  the 
Glueen,  he  flung  himself  on  horseback  without  resting,  and  rode 
at  fiery  speed  to  St.  Andrews,  where  he  embraced  her  and  his 
heir.  His  mother  mentions  the  alarm  in  one  of  her  letters  to 
her  brother,  Henry  VIII. ^ 

Mossman,  the  goldsmith,  had  prepared  for  the  royal  James  the 
gold  whistle  he  had  commissioned  him  to  make,  which  he  deliv- 
vered  to  him  "the  penult  day  of  July  :"  the  workmanship  cost 
£10  4s.  This  artist,  likewise,  converted  six  ounces  and  a  half 
of  fine  silver  into  the  elegant  form  of  a  clamshell,  used  by  the 
King's  grace  to  keep  his  hawk's  meat  in.'^ 

Falcons  from  Scotland  were  considered  in  those  days  as  accept- 
able presents  to  the  proudest  princes  in  Europe,  and  accordingly 
James  sent  presents  of  hawks  to  his  Q,ueen's  father,  the  Duke  of 
Guise,  to  the  King  of  France,  and  to  the  Dauphin.  The  hawks 
were  carried  in  panniers  on  a  hackney.  Charges  occur  for  the 
carriage  of  the  falcons  through  France  to  Lorraine,  and  for  can- 
vas and  rope  with  which  their  panniers,  or,  as  the  Compotus 
terms  it,  "  mangers"  Avere  made  and  tied  on  the  hackney. steed. 

James  V.'s  poem  of  Christ's  Kirk  on  the  Green  is  supposed 
to  have  been  written  in  the  first  happy  year  of  his  wedlock  with 
Mary  of  Lorraine,  during  the  occasional  retirement  of  the  royal 
pair  at  their  favorite  hunting  Palace  of  Falkland.  The  genius 
of  the  royal  James  has  procured  him  among  the  reading  public, 
even  in  England,  some  celebrity  as  an  author,  but  how  few  per- 
sons in  the  south  can  do  any  justice  to  the  naive  and  racy  delin- 

1  State  Papers,  vol,  v. ;  date  very  uncertain.  ^  Compotua. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  343 

eation  of  character  in  his  oft-named  poem.  Few,  indeed,  have 
any  correct  idea  of  its  subject,  the  majority  guessing  from  its  title 
that  it  is  a  religious  poem  of  monastic  tendency. 

The  poetry  of  James  V.,  or  at  least  that  which  has  survived 
the  forgetfulness  of  time,  is  of  an  exclusively  comic  description, 
the  fruits  of  his  keen  and  clever  observation  when  he  roved  his 
land  in  disguise,  like  Haroun-al-E,ashid,  for  the  ostensible  motive 
of  witnessing  whether  "  his  justice"  was  duly  administered  to  his 
people.  Many  a  well-known  adventure,  especially  that  commem- 
orated in  his  comic  ballad  of  The  Gaberlunzie  Man,  proves 
that  his  Scottish  majesty  did  not  himself  keep  very  rigidly  the 
laws  of  morality.  None  of  these  incidents  seem  to  have  occurred 
during  his  married  life,  therefore  their  recital  may  be  excused  in 
the  biographies  of  his  Q.ueens. 

His  poem  of  Christ's  Kirk,  on  the  contrary,  contains  traits  of 
the  customs  and  amusements  his  French  marriages  had  intro- 
duced in  Scotland.  It  is  a  spirited  delineation  of  the  humors  of 
a  fair,  or  rather  of  a  wake,  held  on  a  green  near  his  own  favorite 
Palace  of  Falkland.^  The  wake  commenced  the  night  of  May- 
eve,  on  the  vigil  of  St.  Philip  and  St.  James.  It  is  still  one  of 
the  fairs  of  Scotland,  and  the  ruins  of  Christ's  Church,  in  the 
neighborhood,  attest  its  locality.  James  V.,  the  monarch  of  the 
poor,  used  the  vernacular  idioms  of  his  people,  in  which  he  de- 
scribed the  freakish  fancies  of  a  fray  he  witnessed  at  the  wake  on 
the  green  at  Christ's  Kirk. 

The  King  commences  his  poem  by  mentioning  the  sports  of  the 
people  at  Peebles,  celebrated  in  a  sprightly  lay  by  his  royal  an- 
cestor, James  I.,  entitled  Peeblis  at  the  Ploy,  or  Play.  James 
V.  likewise  alludes  to  his  own  chivalric  games  performed  at  the 
lists  on  Falkland  Palace  green ;  and  in  his  assumed  character  of 
minstrel  at  the  neighboring  kirk  fair,  of  course  prefers  the  latter 
to  every  other  kind  of  recreation.  With  the  intention  of  making 
a  specimen  of  the  royal  James's  style  intelligible  to  the  general 
reader  throughout  Great  Britain,  here  is  his  commencing  stanza 
in  readable  orthography, — 

^  George  Chalmers  undeniably  proves  that  this  poem  is  not  by  James  L, 
the  royal  author  of  the  Quair,  and  Peebles  at  the  Play,  but  by  James  V. 
Falkland  Palace,  he  shows,  did  not  belong  to  the  Kings  of  Scotland  until  the 
reign  of  James  II. 


344  MARY     OF     LOIIIIAINE, 

"  "Was  ne'er  in  Scotland  heard  or  seen 
Sic  dancing  or  deray, 
Neither  at  Falkland  on  the  Green 

Or  Peeblis  at  the  Play, 
As  was  of  wooers  as  I  ween, 

At  Christ's  Kirk  on  that  e'en. 
There  came  'our  Kitty,'  washen  clean, 
In  her  new  kirtle  gray, 
Full  gay, 
At  Christ  Kirk  on  the  Green 
That  day." 

Whether  "  our  Kitty"  was  some  Cinderella  pertaining  to  the 
royal  household  of  Falkland,  who  thought  it  needful  to  be 
"washen  clean"  for  the  May-eve  festival,  we  will  not  pause  to 
question,  for  she  is  not  the  heroine  of  her  royal  master's  poem, 
but  a  maiden  named  Gillian,  whose  genuine  Scottish  style  of 
beauty  is  thus  depicted, — 

"  Of  all  these  maidens,  mild  as  mead, 

Was  none  so  gwip^  as  Gillie,'^ 
As  any  rose  her  rude  was  red, 

Her  skin  was  like  the  lily  ; 
Full  yellow  yellow  was  her  hair, 

But  she  in  love  was  silly, 
Though  all  her  kin  had  sworn  her  dead. 

She  would  have  her  sweet  Willie." 

The  jealousy  occasioned  by  the  disdain  of  this  yellow-haired 
lassie  for  all  her  wooers  at  the  wake,  excepting  "  her  own  sweet 
"Willie,"  occasioned  a  general  skirmish,  in  which  the  Scottish 
peasants  took  to  their  bows  and  axes.  The  "  town  souter  with 
his  glittering  hair,"  and  "the  miller  of  manly  make,"  whom  it 
would  be  no  joke  to  meet  in  a  fray,  are  evident  portraits  drawn 
with  infinite  fire  and  spirit  :  the  whole  is  a  valuable  picture  of 
the  costume  and  manners  of  a  semi-barbarous,  but  free  and  pros- 
perous people. 

The  poem  is  supposed  to  have  been  written  in  the  exuberance 
of  the  King's  joy  at  his  happy  wedlock  with  Mary  of  Lorraine.® 
His  good-humored  satire  on  the  peasants  at  the  Christ's  Green. 

*  Slender.  ^  Gillian,  or  Juliana. 

^  George  Chalmers'  Poetic  Remains  of  the  Kings  of  Scotland,  p.  146. 


MARY     OF     LOIIRAINE.  345 

wake  choosing  to  imitate  French  dances,  and  their  assumption  of 
fashion,  discarding  the  old  tunes  by  the  demand,  "  Minstrel,  blaw 
up  a  brawl  of  France,"  '  are  traits  considered  confirmatory  of 
that  tradition. 

'  Sibbald.    The  dance  called  brawl  in  England  and  Scotland  is  branle  iu 
France. 


CHAPTER    II. 

SUMMARY. 
Delay  of  the  coronation  of  Mary  of  Lorraine— She  resolves  to  work  the  Crawfurd-muir 
gold  mine — Her  father  sends  her  Lorraine  miners — Her  entry  into  Edinburgh — Her 
mother  sends  her  a  second  band  of  miners — Her  motlier-in-law's  remarks — The  Queen 
sets  out  on  progress  to  the  Highlands — Anger  at  the  King's  delay  in  meeting  her — His 
letter  of  explanation — The  Queen  goes  with  him  to  hunt  in  the  Highlands — Her  new 
crown  from  the  gold  of  the  mine,  &c. — Her  miners  paid  and  sent  home — Henry  Vlll.'a 
message  to  her — H  er  reception  of  Sir  Ralph  Sadler — The  Queen's  coronation — She  takes 
her  chamber — The  King's  uneasiness  at  her  absence,  and  horrid  dream — Birth  of  her 
second  son — Deaths  of  both  her  sons — Grief  of  the  Queen  and  James  V. — Queen  Mar- 
garet Tudor  consoles  them — The  Queen  goes  in  progress  to  Aberdeen  with  King  James 
— Long  mourning  for  her  children — Discontented  at  the  King's  absence — His  letters  to 
her — War  with  England— The  Queen's  pedestrian  pilgrimage — Hopes  of  offspring — 
Takes  her  chamber  at  Linlithgow — King's  letter  to  her  describing  his  illness — Disaster 
of  his  army  at  Solway— His  sickness  and  mortal  grief— The  Queen  expects  the  birth  of 
another  heir  to  Scotland, 

Mary  of  Lorraine  had  been  Glueen-consort  more  than  a  year, 
and  had  borne  to  her  royal  lord  "  a  fair  lifelike  son,"  yet  she  had 
not  received  the  distinction  of  the  crown-matrimonial  of  Scotland. 
It  is  evident  that  the  beauteous  descendant  of  Charlemagne  did 
not  approve  of  the  regalia  of  Scotland  sufficiently  to  wish  to  ex- 
hibit it  before  the  crowds  of  her  countrymen  who  meant  to  flock 
to  her  court  at  the  period  of  her  consecration. 

Hitherto  the  famous  gold  mine  of  Scotland  at  Crawfurd-muir, 
the  produce  of  which  had  excited  such  sensation  at  James  V.'s 
nuptial  feast,  when  he  wedded  Magdalene  of  France,  had  never 
been  worked  scientifically.  From  the  secret  intelligence  gained 
by  Wharton,  Lord  Warden  of  the  Marches,  for  the  information 
of  the  English  Court, ^  it  may  be  learned  that  native  gold  had 
formed  important  items  in  the  Scotch  treasury  in  the  times  of 
James  IV.  and  the  Regent  Albany ;  but  it  had  merely  been 
gathered  up  in  lumps,  or  washed  from  the  soil,  near  the  supposed 
mine  at  Crawfurd-muir,  It  was  reserved  for  the  enterprise  of  a 
queen  desirous  of  a  new  and  splendid  crown  to  develop  the 
mineral  riches  of  Scotland  ;  for  this  purpose  she  requested  her 
*  State  Papers,  vol.  v,     "Wharton's  Letter. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  347 

mother  and  father  to  send  her  miners  from  her  own  country,  and 
it  may  be  remembered  that  La  Haute-Lorraine  was  the  principal 
mining  district  in  France.' 

The  Glueen's  undertaking  of  working  the  Scotch  gold  mine  now 
forms  a  prominent  feature  in  the  journal  of  that  royal  Compotus 
which  aids  us  in  throwing  some  light  on  the  manners  and  cus- 
toms of  the  era.'*  Nothing  is  more  worthy  of  the  attention  of 
enlightened  minds  than  comparisons  between  the  infant  struggles 
of  science,  and  its  gigantic  progression  in  the  present  day. 

The  cost  of  the  Glueen's  miners,  if  the  whole  of  it  is  charged 
in  her  husband's  expense-book,  did  not  amount  to  a  hundredth 
part  of  the  treasure  realized.  The  royal  pair  were,  therefore, 
fully  justified,  if  they  wished  for  splendid  ornaments  on  a  grand 
ceremonial  day,  in  adapting  the  natural  product  of  their  realm 
for  that  purpose,  instead  of  expending  a  large  and  irrecoverable 
capital  in  a  foreign  land  for  baubles.  Moreover,  if  the  miners 
sent  from  France  carried  some  portion  of  their  earnings  away 
with  them,  they  could  not  help  leaving  behind  them  a  certain 
portion  of  their  knowledge  for  the  benefit  of  Scotland. 

The  Q,ueen  made  her  first  state-entry  into  Edinburgh  June 
10,  1539 — on  the  anniversary  of  St.  Margaret's  day.  "Her 
Grace  came  in,  attended  by  all  the  nobility  in  procession,  first  at 
the  West  Port,  and  rode  down  the  }iigh-gaU  Street  to  the  Abbey 
of  Holyrood-house,  with  great  sports  played  to  her  Grace  through 
all  parts  of  the  town.  Both  the  King  and  Glueen  were  honora- 
bly received,  in  the  castle,  and  in  the  town,  and  also  in  the  pal- 
ace ;  where  they  were  propined  richly  by  the  provost  and  com- 
munity of  the  town,  both  with  spices  and  wine,  gold  and  silver ; 

1  The  year  before  the  Queen's  miners  arrived,  there  -was  "  gold  of  the 
mine"  in  James  V.'s  treasury,  according  to  the  following  entry, — "  Delivered 
by  the  King's  command  86  crowns  of  weight,  4  ounces  to  mix  with  gold  of 
the  mynd  '  to  make  J  an tyl  woman's  chaffrons  with.' — Royal  Compotus,  April, 
1539."  Chevrons  were  ornaments  similar  to  the  fronts  of  Anne  Boleyn 
caps.  It  is  probable  that  the  successful  execution  of  the  gold  frontlets  gave 
the  Queen  the  idea  of  obtaining  sufficient  Scotch  gold  for  a  new  crown. 

^  It  is  to  the  learning  and  intelligence  of  our  kind  friend,  Mr.  A.  Mac- 
donald  of  the  Register  House,  that  the  world  is  indebted  for  this  curious 
feature  in  the  scanty  history  of  our  early  British  statistics.  Tlianks  are  due 
to  him  for  having  dug  this  gold  from  the  dim  and  dark  mine  of  his  rich 
Scottish  records. 


348  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

and  also  great  triumphs,  farces,  and  plays  made  unto  the  Glueen's 
Grace  at  the  expenses  of  the  said  town."  ' 

Mary  returned  to  St.  Andrews  in  July,  where  she  spent  the 
summer.  In  that  month  her  Lorraine  miners  landed  there,  for 
the  following  entry  occurs  in  the  compotus  of  James  V. — 

"  Certain  expenses  disbursed  in  convoying  the  miners  furth  of  St.  An- 
drews to  Edinburgh,  quhilk  came  fra  the  Queen's  Grace's  father  (Claud, 
Duke  of  Guise),  for  hired  horses  to  them  and  their  expenses,  2ds.  lOd." 

The  royal  mining  adventure  was  conducted  with  proper  cau- 
tion. The  Q.ueen  obtained  the  assistance  of  an  English  miner, 
who,  at  the  risk  of  his  sovereign's  vengeance,  "  came  forth  from 
England  and  passed  to  Crawfurd-muir  to  vesy  (view)  the  mynd," 
for  the  consideration  of  £22.  John  Mossman,  the  ingenious  arti- 
ficer in  goldsmith's  work  to  the  court  of  Scotland,  was  the  per- 
son who  had  the  superintendence  of  the  Lorraine  workmen.  His 
expenses  commenced  with  the  following  notice  : — 

"  Item,  to  John  Mossman  to  make  the  miners'  expenses  that  came  forth 
from  Lorraine  in  passing  to  vesy  (view)  the  mine."  "^ 

After  these  preliminaries,  the  royal  pair  proceeded  with  a  degree 
of  regularity  and  earnestness  in  their  mining  undertakings  which 
will  excite  some  surprise  in  those  who  refuse  to  give  people,  in 
the  medieval  ages,  the  slightest  credit  for  knowledge  or  sagacity 
in  the  great  business  of  modern  life — that  of  gold-hunting.  The 
royal  journal  notes  that,  in  August,  1539,  was  incurred  expense 
for  "the  miners  that  came  forth  of  France  fra  the  Clueen^s 
moder."  Thus  the  Uueen's  father,  Claud,  Duke  of  Guise,  sent 
one  party  of  miners  from  Lorraine  in  the  preceding  spring ;  and 
another  party  was  sent  from  France,  in  August,  from  his  duchess, 
the  Glueen's  mother,  Antoinette  de  Bourbon.  These  French 
miners  did  not  work  with  common  candles  in  the  mine  ;  James 
V.  was  at  the  expense  of  providing  them  with  a  species  of  light 
of  a  safer  kind,  called  "  ivork-hmieys,'"  which,  it  is  noted,  was 
on  purpose  for  them  "  to  work  in  the  mine."     He  likewise  paid 

^  Diurnal  of  Occurrents,  p.  22,  Printed  for  the  Bannatyne  Club,  from 
the  original  MSS.  in  possession  of  Sir  John  Maxwell,  Bart,  of  PoUoc. 

'  Ibid.  It  is  to  be  noted  that  the  accountant  always  spells  mine  onynd; 
but  the  sense,  as  any  reader  may  perceive  from  the  above  quotation,  clearly 
indicates  the  right  substantive. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  349 

for  their  expenses  "  in  passing  and  z-esying  (viewin<T)  the  mines, 
and  coming  again  to  Edinburgh,  and  passing  again  to  the  said 
mine.  John  Mossman's  ticket,  given  thereupon,  hears  the  sum 
in  all,  £15  lis."  ^  It  will  he  owned  that  the  manner  of  enter- 
ing the  items  of  "  John  Mossman's  ticket"  has  a  very  business- 
like appearance. 

An  interpreter  was  provided  for  the  Glueen's  French  miners, 
being  "  ane  Scottish  boy  that  speaks  French,  quhilk  passit  with 
the  French  miners  to  Crawfurd-muir,  to  serve  them  till  they  get 
the  Scotch  language — the  costs  of  the  boy,  20s."  ^  The  produce 
of  precious  ore  which  the  Glueen's  workmen  raised  from  Craw- 
furd-muir does  not  appear  in  the  royal  Compotus  kept  by  Kirk- 
aldy  of  Grange  for  some  weeks ;  meantime  many  matters  of 
general  interest  are  recorded  therein.  Charities  of  the  most 
judicious  kind,  outlay  for  the  encouragement  of  the  arts,  together 
with  expenses  for  warlike  ammunition,^  mark  the  occupations  of 
James  Stuart  and  his  consort  at  that  happy  period  of  their  lives. 

The  royal  musical  band  is  remembered  both  for  fees  and  sus- 
tenance. 

"  To  the  four  minstrels  that  play  on  the  viols,  for  their  yearly  pension, 
paid  them  quarterly,  £200. 

"  Item,  to  the  twa  minstrels  that  play  upon  the  Swesch  talburn,  £50. 
"  Item,  to  four  minstrels  that  play  on  the  trempets  of  war,  £100."  * 

Whether  Scots  pounds  or  otherwise,  the  salaries  are  high,  for  the 
Scots  pound  bore  a  respectable  value  in  the  days  of  James  IV. 
and  his  son. 

Although  the  Q,ueen  had  borne  a  promising  boy  in  the  pre- 
ceding May,  the  dowager,  Margaret  Tudor,  and  likewise  the 
Scottish  people,  were  importunate  in  their  demands  for  more 
royal  offspring.  Glueen  Margaret  murmured,  in  a  letter  to  her 
brother  Henry  VIII.,  how  her  daughter-in-law  had  given  out  that 
she  was  likely  to  be  again  a  mother,  "but  she  is  not,  whereat 
the  subjects  of  Scotland  much  grudgeth  against  her."°  This  is 
the  only  complaint  extant    made  by   Clueen    Margaret  of  her 

^  Diurnal  of  Occurrents.  ^  Ibid. 

^  Mons  Meg  receives  some  coats  of  red  paint,  and  warlike  stores  are  pro- 
vided for  the  Salamander  (Francis  I.'s  gift)  and  other  vessels  used  by  the 
royal  surveyor  for  his  famous  coasting  voyages. 

^  Compotus. 

'  State  Papers,  vol.  v.     Letter  of  Queen  Margaret,  Sept.  5,  1589. 


350  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

daughter-in-law.  It  was  untrue,  as  well  as  unjust,  for  the  sons 
of  James  V.  followed  each  other  quickly. 

A  grand  progress  connected  with  hunting  in  the  Highlands 
was  projected  by  the  royal  pair  in  the  autumn  of  1539.  The 
dueen  made  a  stately  entry  into  Dundee  the  1st  of  September, 
1539;  she  had  spent  the  summer  at  St.  Andrews,  and  visited 
occasionally  a  place  called  Pitlethy,  which  either  we  fail  to 
recognize  among  the  Scottish  seats  of  royalty,  or  the  orthography 
of  the  treasurer,  James  Kirkaldy  of  Grange,  has  disguised  it. 
He  states  that — "  September  1st,  was  given  for  freight,  at  the 
ferry  of  Dundee,  for  the  gear  that  passed  with  the  Glueen's 
Grace,  35."  Another  entry  proves  that  the  Glueen  of  Scotland 
made  a  particular  toilet  on  the  road  before  she  entered.  "  Item, 
given  for  carrying  the  dueen's  wardrobe  and  coffers  forth  from 
Dundee  to  the  place  where  her  Grace  put  on  her  claiths  ere  her 
entrance  in  Dundee."^ 

Mary  of  Lorraine  expected  her  royal  lord  at  Dundee  accord- 
ing to  promise.  Three  or  four  days  passed  by,  but  he  came  not ; 
and  the  dueen,  inspired  with  a  feeling  of  jealousy  on  account  of 
his  absence,  wrote  him  an  angry  letter.  James  answered  it  in 
French,  to  the  following  effect : — "^ 

James  V.  to  Mary  of  Lorraine,  his  Queen. 

"  I  have  received  the  letter  which  it  pleased  you  to  write  to  me.  I  found 
it  very  strange,  being  ill  as  I  have  been  for  these  three  days  past. 

"  I  entreat  you  to  deem  me  a  man  of  my  word  and  promise,  of  which  you 
will  never  find  me  fail.  The  rest  of  my  reply  I  shall  bring  you  myself  im- 
mediately. 

"  Praying  our  Lord  to  give  you  long  and  happy  life.  Your  son  is  very 
well,  God  be  thanked. 

"  I  am  your  serviteur  and  friend, 

"James  R."^ 

The  royal  James  was  evidently  resentful  for  reproaches  without 
due  deservings.  The  cause  of  his  detention  had  been  illness  se- 
vere enough  to  fetter  even  his  active  movements.     He  shows,  in 

'  Compotus. 

*  From  a  small  scarce  tract,  containing  extracts  from  the  Balcarras 
Papers,  Register  Office. 

^  In  consequence  of  coincident  dates  in  the  royal  Compotus,  we  venture 
to  place  this  letter,  which  is  the  third  according  to  the  learned  editor's 
arrangement,  as  the  first. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  351 

his  reply,  the  hauteur  of  the  sovereign,  and  the  sense  of  injury 
natural  to  a  lover  unjustly  accused.  In  the  absence  of  dates  of 
time  and  place,  the  supposition  may  be  hazarded  that  the  Glueen 
was  sojourning  at  Dundee,'  and  that  the  King  wrote  from  St. 
Andrews,  as  he  mentions  the  young  prince,  who  resided  there 
during  his  short  life. 

There  is  a  coincidence  between  the  King's  complaints  of  illness 
and  an  ominous  entry  in  the  Compotus  of  September,  1539, 
which  commences  for  that  month  thus — "  Given  ten  pounds  to 
Raphael,  Frenchman,  to  send  to  Flanders  for  drugs  for  the  King's 
Grace,"  The  health  of  James  V.  had  not  been  strong  since 
1537.  In  the  summer  of  that  year  an  accident  befell  him  in 
Stirling  park,  where  he  had  been  flung  violently  from  his  horse 
when  hunting.^  He  had  bruised  his  side  severely  ;  but,  with- 
his  usual  high  spirit,  made  light  of  the  injury.  The  above  letter, 
together  with  the  entry  in  the  Compotus,  are  the  first  indications 
of  serious  malady,  occurring  from  time  to  time,  many  months 
before  the  heart-breaking  disaster  at  Solway,  which  hastened 
the  progress  of  disease. 

The  King's  illness  evidently  delayed  the  hunting  some  days. 
The  Q,ueen  went  with  him  to  Stirling  Castle,  from  whence  they 
adjourned  to  the  Highlands,  as  may  be  seen  by  certain  payments 
in  the  Compotus. 

"  Item,  delivered  to  David  Sibbald  for  carriage  of  the  Queen's  Grace  and 
her  ladies,  coffers,  and  bedding,  from  Stirhng  Castle  to  Glenarknay  (Glen- 
orchay),  coming  and  ganging,  and  other  parts  where  her  Grace  traveled  the 
said  month,  as  his  account  bears,  £6  17.9.  Qd. ;"  likewise,  "  Item,  the  24th 
day  of  September — Given  to  John  Tennant  to  pay  carriage-men  for  ten 
horse>i,  with  bedding,  forth  of  Stirling  to  the  hunting  of  Glenfynlaws,  being 
foith  (out)  eight  days,  ilk  (each)  horse  2s. ;  and  seven  horses  forth  from 
Dunblane  to  the  same  hunting,  £13  12s." 

The  preparations  for  the  coronation  of  Mary  of  Lorraine  com- 
menced as  early  as  October  5th,  when  thirty-five  ounces  of  "  gold 
of  the  mine"  were  given  out  from  the  royal  stores  "  for  making 
the  dueen's  crown."  The  goldsmith  was  paid  for  fashioning 
and  working  the  gold,  and  furnishing  stones  to  set  therein,  ninety 
pounds.''  Soon  after,  a  crown  was  made  for  the  King  of  the 
Crawfurd-muir  gold.     The  notation  of  the  payment  made  to  the 

^  Compotus.     Her  entry  at  Dundee  was  Sept.  1,  1539.  *  Pinkerton. 

3  Compotus  of  Kirkaldy  of  Grange,  treasurer. 


352  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

goldsmith  "  for  making  and  fashioning  the  King's  crown,  weigh- 
ing three  pounds  ten  ounces  M^eight — gold  of  the  mine  heing 
given  out  to  him — forty-one  ounces  and  a  quarter,  the  goldsmith 
heing  paid  for  his  working  it  £30."  In  this  royal  crown  were 
set  twenty-two  stones,  of  which  three  were  great  garnets,  and 
one  great  ammerot  (emerald).  "  The  crown,"  adds  the  Compo- 
tus,  "was  delivered  to  the  King's  Grace  at  Holyrood  House,  the 
13th  day  of  February  following."  Thus  the  fact  is  undeniable, 
that  the  crown  of  Scotland  is  made  from  gold  ore  which  was  the 
native  product  of  the  country.^ 

The  entries  now  become  numerous  of  goldsmith's  work  for 
fashioning  ornaments  which  were  to  be  M^orn  at  the  approaching 
coronation.  The  metal  of  these  jewels  is  especially  noted  as 
"gold  of  the  mynd."  It  is  a  circumstance  worthy  of  remark, 
that,  as  soon  as  a  sufficient  quantity  was  procured  for  this  pur- 
pose, the  miners  v/ere  sent  back  with  payment  and  liberal 
rewards  to  their  own  country.  The  entries  of  their  payment 
thus  occur  : — 

"  Delivered  to  George  Carmichaell,  son  to  the  captain  of  Crawfurd,  for 
expenses  made  on  the  twa  French  miners,  being  working  upon  the  mynde 
of  Craw  fur  d-m  air,  £15  15s." 

"  Item,  the  9th  day  of  October — Given  to  the  said  miners,  at  their  depart- 
ing to  France,  at  the  King's  command,  £80." 

The  royal  James,  meanwhile,  continued  to  provide  a  great 
store  of  costly  gifts  as  presents  for  his  guests  and  courtiers.  Thomas 
Uynde,  his  goldsmith,  received  of  him,  at  one  payment,  £282  3s., 
"  for  making  chains,  tablets,  rings,  carcanets,  chevrons,  and  other 
golden  work,  as  his  account  particularly  bears,  deliverit  to  the 
King's  Grace  in  Linlithgow." 

"Item,  the  15th  day  of  December — Given  to  the  said  goldsmith  for  mak- 
ing, and  the  faslnon  of  'ane  mertrick  herd  and  feit'  (feet)  enamaled  made 
of  gold  of  the  mine,  weighing  five  ounces  and  a  half,  delivered  to  the  Queen's 
Grace." 

The  King  and  dueen  had  bracelets  made  of  the  same  gold. 

The  Q.ueen  had  a  rich  belt  wrought  by  the  goldsmith  out  of 

nineteen  and  a  half  ounces  of  this  gold,  which  belt  was  elasped 

with  a  large  sapphire.     The  expense  of  raising  the  gold  from  the 

*  Compotus  of  Kirkaldy  of  Grange,  treasurer. 


MAKY     OF     LORRAINE.  353 

mine   at   Crawfurd-muir  seems  to  have  scarcely  exceeded    one 
hundred  pounds. 

The  Q.ueen  kept  court  with  James  V.  at  Holyrood,  Christmas 
1539-40.  The  royal  accounts  continue  replete  with  the  new 
dresses  and  jewelry,  and  other  preparations  for  her  consecration. 

"  Given  to  the  sacristan  of  the  King's  chapel,  for  carriage  of  the  chapel- 
gear  from  Stirling  to  Linlithgow,  at  Yule  (Christmas),  and  from  Linlithgow 
for  Edinburgh,  for  the  Queen's  coronation,  £5  6s.  Sd." 

The  King  presented  two  of  his  Q,ueen's  maids  with  new  gowns. 
"  Sibella  Drummond  was  given,  at  the  King's  Grace's  command," 
says  Kirkaldy's  Compotus,  "thirteen  ells  of  black  damask  to 
make  her  ane  gown  ;  and  Helen  Ross  had  likewise  a  gown  the 
King's  gift."  James  presented  Thomas  Melville's  wife  with 
seven  ells  of  fine  French  cloth,  to  make  her  a  gown  and  kirtle. 
This  present  seems  to  be  in  reward  "  for  keeping  of  certain  pets, 
and  nourishing  of  the  same."'  The  French  children  that  kept 
the  Glueen's  mules  were  new  clad  in  whole  coats  and  half-coats 
of  hose  of  French  brown. 

John  Patterson  charged  thirty-four  shillings  for  a  case  for  the 
King's  new  crown ;  and  Thomas  Arthur  had  half  an  ell  of  rich 
purple  velvet  given  to  him  to  make  a  cap  for  the  inside  of  this 
new  crown.  John  Mossman,  the  King's  goldsmith,  received 
thirty-one  ounces  of  silver  to  make  a  scepter  for  the  Clueen 
against  her  coronation  ;  and  four  rose-nobles  were  given  out  of 
the  treasury  to  gild  the  scepter.  The  fashion  of  the  (Queen's 
scepter,  and  the  making,  cost  as  much  as  £7  15s.  Other  sums 
were  expended  on  entertaining  the  Englishman  who  came  (Feb, 
4,  1539-40)  to  demand  a  safe-conduct  for  "  RaufFe  Sadillaris." 

In  fact,  in  the  early  part  of  the  year  1539-40,  Henry  VIII. 
dispatched  Sir  Halph  Sadler  on  an  embassy  to  the  court  of 
Scotland,  for  the  two-fold  purpose  of  destroying  the  credit  of 
James's  favorite  minister.  Cardinal  Beton,  by  showing  certain 
intercepted  letters  from  that  ecclesiastical  premier  to  his  agent  at 
Eome,  which  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  English,  and  of 
endeavoring  to  persuade   James   to  replenish  his  exchequer  by 

^  The  services  of  this  lady  are  not  very  intelliyible,  whether  pettis  may 
be  translated  into  the  modern  English  pets  or  whether  both  pettis  and  pets 
are  derived  from  the  French  petits.  Whatsoever  they  might  be — whether 
kittens,  lambs,  birds,  or  dogs — they  required  care  and  nourishment 


354  MARY     OF     LORRAINE, 

seizing  all  the  abbey-lands  and  church  property.  Sir  Ualph  is 
particularly  enjoined,  in  his  instructions,  to  visit  and  compliment 
the  Q,ueen,  in  his  royal  master's  name,  "  on  the  good,  honorable, 
and  virtuous  life,  which,  from  report,  his  majesty  understood 
subsisted  between  her  and  the  King  his  nephew  ;"  ^  ahbrding 
thereby  a  testimonial  to  the  matrimonial  felicity  of  James  V.  and 
his  second  consort. 

Sadler  informs  Henry  that  he  had  an  honorable  reception,  the 
Herald  Rothesay  being  sent  to  welcome  him  and  arrange  for  his 
lodging  and  accommodations ;  and  two  days  after.  Sir  William 
Ogilvy,  Captain  Borthwick,  and  Sir  David  Lindsay  of  the  Mount, 
the  Lord  Lion,  came  to  conduct  him  into  the  King  of  Scotland's 
presence.  They  brought  him  first  into  the  Chapel  Royal,  where, 
as  early  as  nine  in  the  morning,  he  saw  the  King  kneeling  under 
his  canopy  of  state,  surrounded  by  his  ministers  and  nobles,  at 
his  devotions.  Room  being  made  for  the  English  ambassador  to 
pass  through  the  press  of  people  of  all  degrees  who  thronged  the 
chapel,  he  was  conducted  into  a  seat  immediately  behind  the 
King.  When  the  service  was  ended.  King  James  rose  from  his 
knees  ;  "  and  so  soon  as  he  saw  me,"  says  his  excellency,  "  he 
came  from  under  his  cloth  of  state,  and  full  gently  embraced  me 
and  welcomed  me.  I  said  that  your  Majesty  commanded  me  to 
make  your  Grace's  most  hearty  commendations,  and  therewith 
presented  unto  him  your  Majesty's  letters.  '  Now,  I  pray  you,' 
quoth  he,  '  how  doth  his  good  Grace  ?'  I  answered,  '  that  your 
Grace,  thanked  be  God,  was  healthful  and  merry.' "  The  mirth- 
fulness  imputed  to  Henry  by  his  politic  representative  was  cer- 
tainly very  far  from  being  a  true  description  of  his  state  of  mind, 
which  was  at  that  time  in  a  most  splenetic  access  of  moody  dis- 
content, on  account  of  his  disappointment  in  the  personal  appear- 
ance and  manners  of  his  newly- wedded  consort,  Anne  of  Cleves — 
circumstances  that  rendered  the  English  Schriar  perhaps  more 
than  ever  disposed  to  envy  his  nephew  the  happiness  he  enjoyed 
with  Mary  of  Lorraine,  whom  he  had  so  eagerly  coveted  for  his 
fourth  queen.  After  many  courtesies  had  been  exchanged  be- 
tween King  James  and  Sadler,  his  majesty  appointed  the  morrow 
forenoon  for  giving  him  formal  audience.  "  So,"  continues  the 
ambassador,  "  he  made  me  a  countenance,  and  committed  me  to 
them  that  were  appointed  to  keep  me  company,  and  so  went  to 
1  Sadler  Papers,  edited  by  Sir  Walter  Scott,  vol.  i.  p.  12. 


MARY     OF     LOE.RAINE,  355 

his  chamber,  as  they  said,  to  dine.  Then  quoth  Captain  Borth- 
wick  to  me,  '  If  ye  will  tarry  here  in  the  chapel  any  season,  ye 
shall  see  the  (dueen  come  to  mass.'  '  By  my  troth,'  quoth  I, 
'  and  I  have  in  charge  to  make  the  King's  Majesty  my  master's 
hearty  commendations  to  both  the  Glueens  here'  (meaning  Mar- 
garet the  Q.ueen-mother,  and  Mary  the  dueen-consort),  '  but  I 
have  forgotten  to  ask  license  of  the  King  to  visit  and  see  them  ; 
and  therefore  I  will  not  tarry  now,  but  shall  take  another  time 
for  the  same.'  Borthwick  went  to  inform  the  King,  and  inquire 
his  pleasure  therein  ;  but  presently  returned,  bringing  word  '  that 
the  (dueen  was  something  crazed,  and  the  King  thought  it  better 
that  he  should  defer  his  presentation  till  the  next  day.'  "  ^  The 
(dueen's  indisposition  was  merely  personal  illness. 

"The  next  day,  being  Friday,"  pursues  Sadler,  "between  nine 
and  ten  of  the  clock,  they  came  all  to  me  again,  and  said  '  that 
the  King  had  sent  them  for  me  to  come  to  his  Grace.'  Accord- 
ing whereto,  I  addressed  myself  with  them  to  the  court,  and  there 
they  brought  me  again  to  the  chapel,  where  the  Gtueen,  the 
King's  wife,  was  hearing  a  sermon  in  French,  accompanied  with 
a  number  of  ladies  and  gentlemen.  The  King  was  not  there  ; 
but,  as  I  perceived,  I  was  brought  there  on  purpose  to  see  the 
Q/Ueen,  and  to  salute  her  from  your  Grace.  I  was  placed  in  the 
same  seat  that  I  had  the  day  before  ;  and  when  the  sermon  was 
done.  Captain  Borthwick  told  me  '  that  the  King's  pleasure  was 
I  should  speak  with  the  Q-ueen  ;'  and  therewith  the  chief  herald, 
Lindsay,  went  to  the  (dueen  and  spake  to  her  what  I  knew  not, 
and  then  came  to  me  and  said  '  that  the  King  had  appointed  me 
then  to  salute  the  (dueen,  according  to  my  request  the  day  before.' 
Wherefore  I  repaired  to  her,  and  said  'that  your  Majesty  had 
given  me  in  charge  to  make  unto  her  your  Grace's  most  hearty 
commendations,  and  to  congratulate  the  good,  virtuous,  and  hon- 
orable life  between  her  and  her  husband,  of  the  continuance 
whereof  your  Grace  would  be  most  joyful  and  glad,  as  the  prox- 
imity of  blood  between  your  Grace  and  your  nephew,  her 
husband,  with  the  perfect  amity  between  the  same,  did  require.' 
She  answered,  '  that  she  was  much  bound  to  your  good  Grace 
that  it  pleased  your  Majesty  to  remember  her  with  your  gracious 
commendations,  and  that  she  did  right  humbly  thank  your  Grace 
therefore ;  and  what  she  could  do  to  the  interest  of  the  amity 
'  Sadler's  State  Papers,  vol.  i.  p.  22, 


356  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

betwixt  the  King  her  husband  and  your  Majesty,  she  would  not 
fail  to  set  forth  the  same  Irora  time  to  time  with  all  her  power.' 
The  ambassador  politely  replied,  '  that  such  lurtherers  as  she  was 
might  do  much  good  to  both  parties,  in  preserving  the  friendly 
relations  that  already  subsisted.'  "  She  prayed  him,  in  return, 
"  to  make  her  right  humble  commendations  to  his  sovereign,  with 
assurance  that  the  continuance  of  the  amity  should  not  fail  by 
God's  grace,"  and  so  dismissed  him.^ 

From  the  same  source  we  learn  that  the  conduct  of  Mary  of 
Lorraine,  as  a  daughter-in-law,  was  so  perfect  as  even  to  satisfy 
that  notorious  grumbler,  Margaret  Tudor,  the  (iueen-dowagfer, 
who  told  his  excellency  "  how  well  she  was  treated,  and  much 
made  of  by  the  new  (iueen." 

The  following  Sunday  morning,  as  early  as  nine  o'clock,  Sir 
Ralph  Sadler  was  conducted,  by  the  heralds  and  officers  of  the 
guard,  from  his  lodgings  in  the  city  of  Edinburgh  to  the  court  at 
Holyrood,  where,  being  brought  into  the  Chapel  Royal,  he  found 
the  Glueen  again  listening  to  a  sermon.  Whether  Sadler  had 
any  taste  for  such  morning  occupations,  in  the  cold  month  of 
February,  or  not,  etiquette  required  him  to  tarry  till  it  was  over  ; 
and  by  that  time  six  fine  horses,  which  he  was  commissioned  by 
his  royal  master,  Henry  VIII.,  to  present  as  a  token  of  his  regard 
to  King  James,  had  arrived.  Sadler  was  then  brought  into  the 
presence  of  the  Scottish  sovereign,  who,  when  informed  of  the 
present,  and  that  the  horses  were  in  the  court,  replied  :  "  '  I 
thank  the  King's  Grace,  mine  uncle,  with  all  mine  heart.  Come 
ye  on  with  me  ;  we  will  go  see  them.'  And  so  he  went  mto 
another  chamber,  where,  out  of  a  window,  he  looked  into  a  fair 
court,  and  thither  were  the  horses  brought,  which  the  King 
liked  exceeding  well,  and  praised  Avondrously.  Christopher 
Erringston  did  ride  them,  one  after  another,  afore  him,  and 
handled  them  very  well.  I  did  set  them  well  forth,"  continues 
Sadler,  "  both  for  their  kinds  and  ages.  He  (James)  praised  much 
the  Barbary  horse  and  the  Jennet  ;  '  and,'  quoth  he,  '  I  like 
them  the  better,  because  they  be  of  mine  uncle's  own  brood.  If 
the  Barbary  horse,'  quoth  he,  '  were  bigger,  he  were  much  too 
good  ;  but,  by  my  troth,  he  is  a  bonny  beast,  and  so  be  they  all.' 
*  Sir,'  quoth  I,  '  your  Grace  may  be  sure  that  the  King's  Majesty, 
your  uncle,  would  not  send  them  to  you  unless  he  thought  them 
1  Sadler's  State  Papers,  Embassy  to  Scotland  in  1540,  vol.  i.  p.  10. 


MARY     OP     LORRAINE.  357 

a  meet  present  for  you.'  '  By  my  soul,'  quoth  he,  '  I  thank  much 
his  Grace  ;  and  I  assure  you,  his  gentle  remembrance  and  kind- 
ness is  more  pleasure  and  comfort  to  me  than  all  the  gifts  and 
goods  in  the  world  ;'  adding,  that  if  the  ambassador  '  would  call 
to  mind  any  thing  King  Henry  took  delight  in  or  desired,  between 
that  place  and  Turkey,  he  would  do  his  utmost  to  procure  it  for 
him,  and  that  any  thing  within  his  realm  should  be  at  his  com- 
mand.' Then  he  turned  to  his  nobles,  and  began  to  praise  the 
horses,  and  every  man  praised  them  much.  Immediately  after 
came  in  the  master  of  the  household,  and  told  the  King  that  his 
dinner  was  on  the  board.  Wherewith  his  Grace  went  forth  to 
his  dining-chamber,  washed,  and  sat  down  :  and  so,"  continues 
Sadler,  "  bade  the  lords  take  me  with  them  to  dinner.  The  Car- 
dinal (Beton)  took  me  by  the  arm,  and  had  mo  to  the  chamber 
where  the  lords  used  to  dine.  They  made  me  sit  at  the  highest 
place,  and  entertained  me  very  gently."  ^ 

Many,  of  course,  were  the  deceitful  compliments  that  passed 
on  both  sides.  Sadler's  principal  errand  in  that  court  was  to 
destroy  James's  confidence  in  his  ecclesiastical  premier  ;  and  well 
w^ould  it  have  been  for  Mary  of  Lorraine  if  he  had  succeeded  in 
that  object,  and,  by  effecting  the  fall  of  the  ruthless  primate  be- 
fore she  became  entangled  in  his  meshes,  and  identified  with  his 
cruel  measures  against  the  Reformers,  averted  the  evils  and  en- 
mities that  were  subsequently  entailed  on  her  and  hers  by  his 
crimes.  Unfortunately,  Sadler's  attack  on  the  character  of 
Beton  left  him  in  a  stronger  position  than  it  found  him.  One  of 
those  dramatic  scenes  and  dialogues  which,  although  they  enliven 
history,  are  rarely  related  by  historians  of  modern  times,  took 
place  between  the  English  envoy  and  the  Scottish  sovereign, 
when  the  former  re-entered  the  privy-chamber  after  dinner. 
King  James  afforded  Sadler  no  greater  privacy,  for  conference, 
than  that  of  withdrawing  with  him  from  the  diplomatic  circle 
into  a  window — one  of  those  deep  embowed  windows  such  as  may 
still  be  seen  in  the  state  apartments  of  the  ruined  palace  of  Lin- 
lithgow, which  have  been  intended  for  convenient  little  tribunes, 
where  not  only  two  persons,  but  a  whole  party,  might  hold 
conferences  apart  from  the  rest. 

Through  all  the  ceremonious  prohxity  with  which  the  English 
statesman  relates  the  particulars  of  the  colloquy  to  his  own  sover- 
^,  '  Sadler's  State  Papers. 


358  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

eign,  the  characteristic  grace  and  frankness  of  the  Scottish  King's 
manners,  seasoned  occasionally  with  a  sly  dash  of  satire,  is  apparent. 
"  I  gave  humble  thanks,"  says  Sadler,  "  to  his  Grace,  for  the  enter- 
tainment it  pleased  him  to  use  to  such  a  poor  man  as  I.  '  Oh,' 
quoth  he,  '  I  will  not  use  you  as  a  stranger,  nor  none  that  cometh 
from  the  King  mine  uncle.  I  know  ye  are  a  good  servant  to  his 
Grace,  I  would  all  that  had  come  betwixt  him  and  me  would 
report  the  truth  always  as  I  know  ye  have  done,  for  I  know  that 
untrue  reports  of  me  to  mine  uncle  have  caused  him  to  think 
unkindness  of  me  where  I  was  without  blame.'  "  Sadler  told 
him,  that  such  as  wished  no  good  to  either,  would  be  ever  devis- 
ing evil  tales  on  either  side,  to  stir  up  unkindness  betwixt  them  ; 
for,  added  he  emphatically,  "I  think  there  be  some  that  would 
not  have  you  over  great  iriends."  "  Marry,"  exclaimed  James, 
"  I  beshrew  their  hearts,  whosoever  they  be  ;  but,"  and  he 
strengthened  his  asseveration  with  an  oath,  "he  is  not  in  Scot- 
land that  dare  bring  me  an  evil  tale  of  mine  uncle,  nor  say  any 
thing  against  his  honor  ;  for,  may  I  ken  any  such  within  my 
realm,  of  whatsoever  degree  he  be,  he  shall  have  no  less  punish- 
ment than  if  he  faulted  to  us,  for  we  shall  ever  take  his  (King 
Henry's)  cause  as  our  own."  ^  Then  Sadler  protested  his  sov- 
ereign's fatherly  affection  to  King  James,  and,  as  a  proof  of  it, 
referred  to  the  information  he  had  given  of  the  Cardinal's  corre- 
spondence with  Rome.  James  replied,  "  that  he  had  discussed 
the  matter  with  the  Cardinal,  who  had  shown  him  the  copies  of 
the  said  letters,  and  he  could  find  nothing  amiss  in  them."  Sad- 
ler slyly  insinuated  the  possibility  of  some  deception  having  been 
practiced,  by  saying,  "  Well,  sir,  if  your  Grace  do  see  the  original, 
then  shall  ye  perceive  if  the  double  (copy)  and  it  agree."  "  Have 
ye  the  original  here  upon  you  ?"  inquired  King  James.  "  Yea, 
that  I  have,"  was  the  response.  "  Take  it  out  privily,"  cried 
King  James,  "  as  though  it  were  some  other  paper,  and  let  me 
see  it."  "  The  Cardinal  was  in  the  chamber,"  observes  Sadler, 
"  and  therefore  think  I  he  bade  me  take  it  out  secretly.  I  took 
it  forth  of  my  bosom,  and  he  read  it  softly  every  word,  from  the 
beginning  to  the  end.  And  in  one  place  of  the  letter,  the  Cardi- 
nal biddeth  his  agent  '  solicit  that  nothing  might  be  done  that 
might  in  any  wise  irritate  the  King's  Grace  and  his  council 
against  the  liberties  of  holy  kirk,  considering  the  time  is  perilous.' 
'  Sadler's  State  Papers.     Embassy  to  Scotland,  vol.  i.  p.  42. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  359 

When  the  King  did  read  those  words,  quoth  he,  *  They  dread 
me;'" — meaning  his  hierarchy  and  priesthood.  "Sir,"  rejoined 
Sadler,  "  they  have  their  own  abuses,  and  they  fear  lest  your 
G-race  should  find  them."  "  By  my  troth,"  said  King  James, 
"  if  they  do  not  well,  ye  shall  ken  I  will  redress  them."  When 
he  had  read  the  letter  through,  he  gave  it  back  to  Sadler,  telling 
him  he  had  seen  the  copy  of  it  and  found  nothing  amiss.  Sad- 
ler vainly  endeavored  to  construe  certain  passages  in  it  into  trea- 
son ;  but  not  only  did  James  excuse,  but  appear  to  approve  of 
every  thing  his  minister  had  said  and  done.  Then  Sadler  pro- 
ceeded to  tender  King  Henry's  advice,  that  he  should  follow  his 
example  touching  the  suppression  of  the  monastic  establishments, 
or  at  least  some  of  them — -repeating  the  tempting  observation 
which  he  had  made  in  a  former  conference,  of  the  great  gain  and 
profit  that  should  accrue  to  the  Crown,  by  taking  the  lands  to 
the  increase  of  his  revenue.  But  James  and  his  churchmen  had 
come  to  a  mutual  understanding  on  that  point,  and  he,  being 
assured  of  their  willingness  to  pay  well  for  their  security,  replied 
with  his  usual  gay  frankness,  "  By  my  troth,  I  thank  God  I  have 
enough  to  live  on,  and  if  we  mister  (need)  any  thing  that  they 
have,  we  may  have  it  at  our  pleasure."  Sadler  here  objected  to 
the  idle  lives  of  the  monks,  their  vices  and  abuses ;  but  the 
monarch  laughingly  interrupted  him,  by  swearing  "that  he 
would  redress  those  that  were  naught,  and  make  them  behave 
according  to  their  profession."  "Sir,"  retorted  Sadler,  "it  will 
be  hard  to  do  ;"  but  James,  intimating  that  he  was  equal  to 
that  or  any  other  department  of  his  government,  changed  the 
discourse,  and  soon  after  dismissed  him,  the  manner  of  which 
was  very  courtly,  as  described  by  Sadler,  who  says,  "  And  so  he 
gave  me  a  gentle  countenance  with  his  cap  in  his  hand,  and 
bade  Walter  Ogilvie  and  Sir  John  Campbell  to  accompany  me 
to  my  lodging."  In  a  former  conference,  Sadler  had  intimated 
to  the  royal  Scot,  "  that  King  Henry  had  heard  it  reported  that 
he  had  been  turning  his  attention  to  the  profits  derivable  from 
sheep,  and  other  such  mean  things,"  which  his  august  imcle  con- 
sidered derogatory  to  the  honor  and  dignity  of  his  regal  vocation  ; 
and  thought  it  much  better  that  he  should  enrich  himself  with 
the  spoils  of  the  Church  than  the  fleeces  of  the  numerous  flocks 
he  had  gathered  together,  and  was  employing  officers  of  his  own 


360  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

to  tend  on  the  waste  crown-lands.^  James,  nettled  by  this  fam- 
ily taunt,  was  betrayed  into  the  weakness  of  denying  the  truly 
wise  and  paternal  policy  he  was  pursuing,  in  setting  his  subjects 
the  example  of  attending  to  a  branch  of  statistics  which  had 
proved  a  source  of  wealth  in  England  and  Flanders.  "In  good 
faith,"  said  he,  "  I  have  no  sheep,  nor  occupy  no  such  things — 
but  such  as  have  tacks,  (leases)  and  farms  of  me,  peradventure, 
have  such  numbers  of  sheep  and  cattle  as  ye  speak  of  going 
upon  my  lands,  which  I  have  no  regard  to.  But  for  my  part,  by 
my  trothj  I  never  knew  what  I  had  of  mine  own,  nor  yet  do.  I 
thank  God  I  am  able  to  live  well  enough  of  that  which  I  have, 
and  I  have  friends  that  will  not  let  me  mister  (want).  There  is 
a  good  old  man  in  France,"  continued  he  (affectionately  referring 
to  the  parent  of  his  late  well-beloved  and  unforgotten  Magda- 
lene, Francis  I.),  "  my  good  father  the  King  of  France — I  must 
needs  call  him  so,  for  I  am  sure  he  is  like  a  father  to  me — 
that  will  not  see  me  want  any  thing  that  lies  in  him  to  help  me 
with.  Nevertheless,  I  shall  seek  nothing  of  any  man  but  love 
and  friendship  ;  and  for  my  part,  I  shall  hold  my  word  with  all 
princes,  and  for  no  man  living  shall  I  stain  mine  honor  for  any 
worldly  good,  by  the  grace  of  Jesu."'^ 

At  this  very  time,  it  seems  there  were  ten  thousand  sheep 
feeding  in  Ettrick  Forest,  under  the  conduct  of  Andrew  Bell,  the 
King's  shepherd,  going  as  securely  as  if  they  had  been  feeding 
within  the  bounds  of  one  of  his  own  royal  parks  in  Fifeshire.^ 
He  had  so  vigorously  exerted  his  energies  for  the  redress  of  wrong 
and  robbery,  either  from  the  Highland  Caterans  or  the  Border 
thieves,  that  at  this  period  of  his  reign  the  Scotch  proverb, 
"The  rush-bush  keeps  the  cow,"  was  on  the  lips  of  every  good- 
wife  in  the  length  and  breadth  of  his  realm.''  It  was  under  the 
auspices  of  this  monarch  that  the  seed  was  sown  and  fostered  of 
the  woolen  manufactures,  which  in  the  fullness  of  time  were 
destined  to  become  a  source  of  profitable  employment  to  the  pop- 
ulation, both  male  and  female,  of  Scotland.  No  wonder  that  the 
jealous  Tudor  tyrant  looked  on  with  an  unfriendly  eye,  and  en- 
deavored to  persuade  his  royal  neighbor  and  kinsman  to  abandon 
the  culture  of  the  golden  fleece,  which  might  one  day  enable 
Scotland  to  compete  with  England  in  her  manufactures. 

^  Sadler's  State  Papers.  ^  Ibid. 

^  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  p.  237,  old  edit.  *  Border  Histories. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE,  361 

James  was  firm  in  replying  to  the  reiterated  instances  of  Sad- 
ler, that  he  would  not  touch  the  Church  property.  Moreover,  he 
was  in  some  haste  to  rid  himself  of  the  presence  of  that  shrewd 
English  diplomatist,  who,  in  his  report  to  Henry  VIII.,  says — 
"  For  as  I  understand  the  King  here  intendeth  to  dispatch  me 
away  shortly,  because  he  would  go  abroad  in  his  realm  about  his 
pastime — whereunto  they  say  he  is  marvelously  given,  and 
specially  to  hawking,  both  to  the  heron  and  the  river,  and,  as 
they  say,  he  is  a  great  toiler  and  laborer  at  the  same.  It  is  told 
me  that  he  lieth  here  purposely  till  I  be  dispatched,  because  I 
should  not  follow  him  no  further  into  his  realm." 

The  coronation  of  Mary  of  Lorraine  as  Gtueen-consort  of  Scot- 
land took  place  Feb.  27,  1539-40.  She  was  crowned  by  the 
Abbot  of  Aberbrothock,'  no  other  than  David,  Cardinal  Beton. 

The  Clueen  took  her  chamber  at  Stirling  Castle  not  long  after 
her  consecration.  In  the  ensuing  April  she  bore  a  second  fair 
son  to  James  V,  Her  royal  lord  was  ill  at  ease  in  her  absence. 
Feverish  nights  of  insomnolency,  or  dreams  worse  than  the  most 
complete  unrest,  afflicted  him  during  his  sojourn  in  the  Palace 
of  Linlithgow,  where  he  had  taken  up  his  abode.  Either  there 
must  have  been  some  person  capable  of  a  course  of  long  and 
skillful  deception  at  that  palace  and  its  neighboring  abbey,  or 
else  those  strange  coincidences,  which  give  rise,  in  vulgar  par- 
lance, to  the  term  "haunted,"  were  remarkable  there.  Be  this 
as  it  may,  it  is  certain  that  James  V,  was  not  less  startled  by 
supernatural  terrors  at  Linlithgow  Palace  than  his  royal  sire 
had  been  in  its  Abbey  church,  twenty-eight  or  nine  years  previ- 
ously. 

The  old  tempter  of  his  youth,  Sir  James  Hamilton  of  Finart, 
the  man  who  had  previously  borne  a  questionable  character  in 
connection  with  his  mother,  Q.ueen  Margaret  "^ — the  same  who 
had  slain  the  Earl  of  Lennox,  and  who  was  deeply  implicated  in 
the  disgraceful  management  of  the  King's  intrigue  with  the  Lady 
of  Lochleven — had  not  long  before  been  executed,  on  a  charge 
of  conspiracy  against  his  life.  Whatsoever  were  the  previous 
crimes  of  this  man,  it  is  generally  agreed  that  he  was  innocent 
of  the  charge  for  which  he  suffered.     Probably  such  was,  when 

I  Mackenzie, 

"  See  the  preceding  Life  of  Margaret  Tudor,  where  he  is  never  very 
long  absent  from  the  scene. 

VOL,  I. — Qi  O* 


362  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

too  late,  the  impression  on  the  mind  of  the  King,  for  it  was 
the  shadowy  form  of  Sir  James  Hamilton  that  troubled  his  rest. 

The  King-  thought  he  was  still  in  his  own  apartment  at  Lin- 
lithgow, sleeping  beneath  the  state-alcove,  when  suddenly  within 
the  curtains,  at  his  pillow,  stood  the  specter  of  Sir  James  Ham- 
ilton, brandishing  a  naked  sword.  The  heavy  moans  of  the 
King  alarmed  the  attendants  who  slept  near  him.  They  has- 
tened to  his  aid  ;  he  was  found  sitting  up  in  bed,  with  horror 
imprinted  on  his  countenance.  "  I  have  just  seen  the  bastard 
of  Arran,"*  said  he;  "he  stood  even  now  at  my  bolster,  and 
menacing  me  Avith  a  drawn  sword,  with  which  he  smote  off 
first  my  right  arm,  and  then  my  left,  telling  me  he  would  come 
back  anon,  and  finish  me."' 

Sore  dismayed  by  this  terrific  fit  of  nightmare,  which  had 
assumed  the  guise  of  a  spectral  visitation  and  assault,  King 
James  thus  revealed  the  cause  of  his  disturbance  to  his  gentlemen 
of  the  bedchamber.  They,  according  to  the  superstition  of  the 
times,  regarded  it  as  ominous  of  ill,  and  predicted  that  it  would 
be  quickly  followed  by  tidings  of  startling  import — a  prediction 
that,  by  a  singular  coincidence,  was  fulfilled,  for  the  morning's 
light  brought  a  messenger  from  St.  Andrews,  to  communicate  to 
the  King  the  painful  intelligence  that  his  eldest  son,  Prince 
James,  was  so  dangerously  ill  that  serious  apprehensions  of  his 
death  were  entertained.  The  royal  father  hastened  to  St.  An- 
drews with  all  the  speed  his  impetuous  temperature  could  exert, 
but  ere  he  arrived  the  young  heir  of  Scotland  had  expired. 
While  King  James  was  in  the  first  agony  of  this  sudden  bereave- 
ment, a  post  came  from  Stirling,  where  the  dueen  lay  in  child- 
bed, to  let  him  know  that  his  second  son,  and  sole  surviving  hope, 
the  infant  Duke  of  Albany,  was  also  smitten  with  mortal  sick- 
ness, and  not  expected  to  recover.  James  rode  off  to  Stirling 
without  a  moment's  delay  ;  but  again  he  was  too  late  :  the 
princely  babe  had  already  breathed  its  last  sigh.^ 

Heavy  as  were  the  tidings  that  awaited  him  at  Stirling — for 
the  child  died  before  he  could  reach  that  town — far  worse  were 

*  Thus  Sir  James  Hamilton  is  always  called  by  his  cotemporaries  in 
State  Papers  and  letters. 

^  Spottiswoode's  Ecclesiastical  History,  Vl.  Likewise  Buchanan,  Mac- 
kenzie, and  Knox. 

'  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie.     Chronicles  of  Scotland,  p.  391. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  363 

those  he  brought  from  St.  Andrews  for  the  poor  Clueen  in  her 
lying-in  chamber,  who  was  mourning  over  the  loss  of  her  infant. 
Afflicting  as  such  an  event  is  always  to  a  mother,  it  was  not  of 
course  so  severe  a  blow  to  her  as  the  death  of  the  elder  Prince, 
who  was  nearly  eleven  months  old  ;  but  the  one  calamity  follow- 
ing upon  the  other  rendered  the  twofold  bereavement  inexpressi- 
bly painful  to  her.  The  death  of  the  two  infant  Princes  "  caused,' 
says  Lindsay  of  Pitscottie,  "  great  lamentation  to  be  made  in  Scot 
land,  but  especially  by  the  Glueen  their  mother.  Yet,"  continues 
he,  "  the  Q,ueen  comforted  the  King,  saying  *  they  were  young 
enough,  and  God  would  send  them  more  succession.'  "  ^ 

The  entry  in  the  Compotus  for  "  serviettes  (or  napkins)  of  white 
taffety  of  twa  threads,  wherewith  to  hold  the  candles  at  my  Lord 
Duke's  baptism,  April  24th"  (the  child  was  named  Robert  or 
Arthur),  and,  soon  after,  another  entry  of  "  ane  cape  of  lead, 
bought  of  Andrew  Yare  at  Stirling  for  14s.,  which  my  Lord 
Duke  was  buried  in,"  close  the  earthly  accounts  of  these  short- 
lived hopes  of  Scotland.  The  princely  infants  were  buried  on 
the  same  day,  in  the  royal  vault  at  Holyrood  ;  "  and  there  was 
more  dolor  in  all  the  land  for  their  death  than  ever  there  had 
been  joy  for  their  birth." 

The  Q,ueen-mother,  Margaret  Tudor,  remained  at  Stirling  with 
her  son  and  his  consort  during  the  first  effervescence  of  their  grief 
She  wrote  to  her  brother  Henry  YIIL  some  account  of  the  mat- 
ter, but  under  charge  of  secrecy  : — "^ 

"  Pleaseth  you,  dearest  brother,  here  hath  been  great  displeasure  (distress) 
for  the  death  of  the  Prince  and  his  brother,  both  with  the  King  my  son  and 
the  Queen  his  wife ;  wherefore  I  have  done  great  diligence  to  put  them  in 
comfort,  and  is  never  from  them,  but  ever  in  their  company,  whereof  they 
are  very  glad.  Therefore  I  pray  your  Grace  to  hold  me  excused  that  I 
write  not  at  length  of  my  matters  at  this  time,  because  I  can  get  no  leisure  ; 
but  I  trust  ye  will  stand  my  friend  and  loving  brother,  and  that  I  get  no 
hurt  in  nothing  that  I  write  to  your  Grace,  nor  that  ye  will  not  write  noth- 
ing belonging  to  me,  your  sister,  to  the  King  my  son,  without  I  be  first  ad- 
vertised, and  that  it  be  with  mine  avise  (my  consent).  Praying  your  Grace, 
dearest  brother,  that  it  will  please  you  to  do  this  for  me,  your  sister,  and  I 
am,  and  shall  be  ever  ready,  to  do  your  Grace's  will  and  pleasure. 

1  Lesley. 

"^  State  Papers,  vol.  v.  Margaret's  letter  has  been  classed  as  pertaining 
to  1541.  The  editor  of  the  State  Papers  gives  a  notation  that  it  belongs  to 
May,  1640. 


364  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

"But  I  am  afeard  that  I  put  your  Grace  to  great  pain  and  travail  to  read 
my  oft  writing,  and  mine  evil  hand,  praying  your  Grace  to  pardon  me  of  the 
same  ;  and  that  it  will  please  you,  dearest  brother,  to  keep  secret  any  writ- 
ings that  I  send,  for  other  ways  it  may  do  me  great  hurt,  which  I  trust  your 
Grace  would  not  do  to  me,  your  sister,  seeing  I  am  remaining  in  this  realm, 
as  God  knows,  whom  preserve  your  Grace.  Written  at  Stirling  the  12  of 
May. 

"  Your  loving  Sister, 

"  Margabet  R." 

"  To  the  King's  Grace,  my  dearest  brother." 

Mary,  though  bereaved  of  the  hopeful  boys  she  had  borne  in 
such  quick  succession  to  King  James,  was  not  childless,  for  her 
first-born  son  continued  to  live  and  flourish,  though  far  away,  in 
his  paternal  castles  of  Amiens  or  Chasteaudun.  He  was  now 
old  enough  to  ask  for  his  mother,  and  perhaps  sufficiently  intelli- 
gent to  comprehend  the  reply  of  his  attendants,  that  she  had  left 
him  before  he  could  remember  her  to  be  a  Q,ueen,  and  that  one 
day  he  might  be  allowed  to  go  and  pay  his  duty  to  her  in  her 
royal  court  of  Holyrood.  How  often  must  her  heart  have  yearned 
after  her  absent  one  in  the  midst  of  all  the  pomp  and  pageantry 
of  public  games,  and  those  unsatisfactory  pleasures  that  have 
merriment  but  no  joy  ! 

In  order  to  divert  their  minds  from  the  painful  loss  they  had 
sustained,  the  King  and  Glueen  made  a  progress  through  the 
principal  towns  in  Scotland.  Their  first  visit  was  to  Perth, 
where  the  Q,ueen  was  received  very  honorably,  the  principal 
nobles  of  that  neighborhood  hastening  to  testify  their  respect  for 
her.  From  thence,  accompanied  by  her  royal  husband,  she  pro- 
ceeded to  Aberdeen,  where  they  were  entertained  with  divers 
pageants  and  plays  by  the  town,  the  new  university,*  and  schools. 
They  remained  there  fifteen  days  as  the  guests  of  the  Bishop. 
Elaborate  orations  of  welcome  were  addressed  to  the  royal  pair 
by  the  scholars  and  fellows  at  the  colleges  and  schools,  in  Greek, 
Latin,  and  other  languages ;  scientific  exercises  and  philosophic 
discussions  also  took  place  on  the  occasion,  all  which  were  much 
commended  both  by  the  King  and  Glueen,  who  appeared  to  ap- 
preciate the  intellectual  pl.easures  prepared  for  them  by  their 
learned  and  loyal  lieges  of  Aberdeen.^ 

*  Founded  by  the  King's  tutor,  Bishop  Gavin  Dunbar. 
^  Some  particulars  of  the  reception  of  James  and  Mary  will  be  found  iti 
the  publications  of  the  Spalding  Club,  from  the  MSS.  records  of  the  town. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  365 

Mary  of  Lorraine  was  still  in  deep  mourning  for  the  loss  of  her 
infants,  in  November,  1540,  when  four  yards  of  black  velvet  were 
given  out  of  the  King's  store  to  mend  her  chariot.  It  was  for  a 
new  lining,  and  cost  £11  4s.  She  spent  December  with  the 
King  at  their  favorite  retirement  of  Falkland.  Under  the  head 
of  expenses  disbursed  upon  the  Glueen's  Grace  occur  "  fifteen  ells 
of  fine  black  lukis  (which  was  Lucca  or  Luchese  velvet),  to  be 
ane  gown  for  her,  costing  £67  10s.,  sent  to  Falkland  to  her 
Grace."  ^ 

At  this  period  of  mourning  many  superstitious  observances  are 
noted  in  the  royal  Compotus.  The  "gold  of  the  mine"  was 
again  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  reliquary  to  "  ane 
bone  of  St.  Andrew."  The  goldsmith,  Mossman,  likewise  made 
a  reliquary  of  fifteen  ounces  of  silver  for  a  bone  of  St.  Mahago, 
and  had  withal  "  two  rose-nobles  to  gild  the  same.  Three  names 
o^  Jacobus  Quintus  with  the  King's  arms  and  crown  above  the 
head,  and  two  unicorns  bearing  the  same."^  The  King's  new 
shooting-jacket  was  made  of  black  velvet  this  year,  he  being  still 
in  mourning  for  his  infant  princes. 

The  dowager  Q,ueen,  Margaret  Tudor,  was  always  on  excellent 
terms  with  her  daughter-in-law.  She  had  been  persuaded  by  her 
not  only  to  be  a  zealous  observer  of  the  Roman  Catholic  rites, 
but  had,  out  of  respect  for  her  good  opinion,  relinquished  a  third 
divorce,  had  taken  Harry  Stuart  again,  and  lived  decorously  for 
the  brief  residue  of  her  days.  After  Margaret's  death,  some- 
thing like  a  serious  misunderstanding  took  place  between  James 
and  his  consort. 

Mary  of  Lorraine  had  heard,  from  some  tale-bearers  at  her 
court,  that  her  royal  husband  meant  to  absent  himself  from  her 
longer  than  she  deemed  requisite  after  the  performance  of  his 
filial  duties  at  the  funeral  of  the  deceased  Q,ueen.  The  tone  of  a 
letter  written  by  this  princess  to  recall  her  wanderer,  can  only  be 
guessed  at  by  his  reply.  James's  epistle  is  stormy,  yet  a  love- 
letter.     Few  as  the  lines  are,  they  imply  love  to  her,  indignation 

^  Compotus,  December,  1540. 

"  Repeated  instances  occur,  besides  the  above,  of  the  supporters  of  Scot- 
land being  two  unicorns,  likewise  that  there  was  a  royal  plate  stamp  to 
signify  the  proper  purity  of  gold  and  silver,  called  "  the  unicorn  stamp," 
often  mentioned  in  the  Compotus.  It  appears  to  have  been  similar  in  its 
use  to  the  famous  lion  stamp  impressed  at  Goldsmiths'  Hall,  London. 


366  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

at  certain  mischief-makers,  compliance  with  her  will,  denial  of 
long  a.bsence,  appointment  for  speedy  return,  and,  above  all,  pro- 
fession of  being  that  rara  avis — a  humble  husband. 


"James  V.  to  Mary  of  Lorraine,  his  consort.^ 

"Perth,  Dec,  1541. 
"  I  have  received  the  letter  which  it  has  pleased  you  to  write  to  me,  for 
the  which  I  thank  you  humbly  ;  but  those  who  told  you  I  would  not  quit 
this  place  have  falsely  lied,  because  I  have  no  thought  but  of  being  with 
you  on  Sunday.  And  touching  my  mother's  things, '^  I  will  not  forget. 
Entreating  you  not  to  be  so  tlmndering^  until  you  know  the  truth,  praying 
you  to  be  of  good  cheer  until  my  return,  which  will  be  on  Sunday,  and 
praying  our  Lord  to  give  you  good  life  and  long, 

"  Your  humble  husband, 

"James  R." 

It  is  probable  that  the  robe  and  laces  mentioned  by  the  King 
in  his  next  letter  had  reference  to  his  mother's  ''schois,''  or 
things. 

"  James  V.  to  Mary  of  Lorraine,  his  consort. 

"Following  your  direction,!  send  you  by  this  present  bearer  the  robe  and 
laces  which  I  had  promised  you  to  send.  My  very  humble  commendations 
to  your  good  Grace,  praying  you  to  take  occasion  to  treat  me  well,  and  to 
keep  the  promise  you  have  made  me,  as  a  woman  of  worth  ought  to  do  to 
him  who  always  has  deserved  it,  and  will  all  my  life  by  the  aid  of  God. 
Entreating  our  Lord  to  give  you  good  life  and  long, 

"  Your  very  humble  husband, 

"James  R." 

In  all  the  letters  of  the  royal  James  to  Mary  of  Lorraine  there 
is  a  love-quarrel  to  be  made  up,  or  anger  to  be  averted.  It  is 
undeniable  that  he  did  not  prosper  much  when  absent  from  his 
Q/Ueen,  which  must  plead  her  excuse  for  writing  cross  letters 
when  he  made  his  escape  for  too  long  a  time  from  her  side. 

^  Register  Office,  Edinburgh.     Balcarres  Papers,  from  French  original. 

^  "  Et  touschaiit  le  schoisde  mn  merre'  has  been  supposed  to  be  "  touching 
the  choice  of  my  mother,"  and  to  refer  to  one  or  other  of  Margaret  Tudor's 
numerous  spouses.  But  the  word  is  evidently  chose  or  cho-ses,  for  in  the 
right  use  of  French  plurals  the  royal  James  was  not  particular ;  he  alludes 
by  that  word  to  some  of  his  deceased  mother's  personal  effects, 

^  Foudroye  or  foudrouyant  is  the  French  word.  The  sense  of  the  sentence 
proves  that  it  means  violent  displeasure. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  367 

Henry  VIII.  continued  importunate  for  James  to  give  him  the 
personal  conference  at  York  which  he  had  evasively  promised  by 
Sir  Ralph  Sadler.  It  is  stated  by  the  writers  of  the  period  that 
James  would  have  kept  the  engagement,  had  he  not  been  effectu- 
ally dissuaded  from  it  by  his  subtile  minister,  Cardinal  Beton.^ 
Henry  owed  James  ill-will  for  declining  the  hand  of  his  daughter, 
Mary  Tudor,  after  her  legitimacy  had  been  impugned,  and  still 
more  so  for  carrying  off  the  matrimonial  prize,  Mary  of  Lorraine, 
for  which  they  had  both  contended.  Since  his  unsuccessful  suit 
to  her,  Henry  had  wedded  and  ridded  himself  of  two  wives — one 
by  divorce,  the  other  by  the  axe.  Mary  of  Lorraine  had  not  only 
proved  the  most  irreproachable  of  wives,  but  she  had  borne  two 
fair  boys  in  less  than  two  years  after  her  marriage  to  James. 
Both  these  hopeful  princes  had,  it  is  true,  been  cut  off  by  sudden 
sickness  and  death,  yet  there  was  every  prospect  that  she  would, 
in  the  course  of  a  few  months,  repair  that  loss,  for  her  pregnancy 
was  again  publicly  announced,  to  the  great  joy  of  King  James 
and  his  people.  Henry,  who  had  not  yet  succeeded  in  obtaining 
a  sixth  consort  to  his  mind,  and  was  frantically  desirous  of  more 
sons,  sorely  envied  his  nephew's  wedded  felicity,  in  the  possession 
of  so  fruitful  a  dueen.  He  might  not,  perhaps — considering 
what  queer  pranks  he  was  wont  to  play  in  his  love  affairs — have 
hesitated  to  make  her  a  widow  again,  if  James  V.  had  accepted 
his  pressing  invitation  to  meet  him  at  York,  which  he  again 
reiterated  by  Lord  William  Howard ;  but  James  was  too  wise  to 
trust  him. 

Hostilities  soon  after  commenced  with  England,  in  consequence 
of  Henry  causing  the  seizure  of  a  rich  Scotch  merchant  fleet,  for 
which  James  demanded  satisfaction  with  becoming  spirit.  Henry 
not  only  would  not  relinquish  his  prey,  but,  without  any  procla- 
mation of  war,  sent  Sir  Robert  Bowes  with  an  army  of  three 
thousand  men  to  make  a  raid  into  Scotland,  and  burn  and  spoil 
the  small  towns  on  the  frontier.  James  dispatched  the  Earl  of 
Huntley  to  repel  the  invaders,  who  defeated  them  with  great  loss 
at  a  place  called  Halden  Brig,  in  the  Merse,  and  took  their 
leader  and  six  hundred  prisoners  (August  24,  1542).^*  After  this 
defeat,  Henry  sent  forty  thousand  men,  under  the  command  of 
the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  who,  guided  and  abetted  by  the  Earl  of 
Angus,  Sir  George  Douglas,  and  other  traitor  Scots,  carried  fire 

'  Buchanan.     Pitscottie.  '  Lesley,  Tytler,  Knox,  Pitecottie. 


368  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

and  sword  into  the  fair  district  of  Tweeddale  ;  but  again  James's 
victorious  general,  Huntley,  with  inferior  numbers,  defeated  and 
put  the  invading  forces  to  flight.  These  successes  naturally  dis- 
posed the  King  of  Scotland  to  make  reprisals,  by  aggressions  on 
the  English  border.  His  nobles  were  strongly  opposed  to  this 
measure,  and  plainly  told  him  they  were  not  compelled  to  follow 
his  banner  out  of  his  own  realm  ;  that  their  provisions  were 
exhausted,  and  the  season  of  the  year  too  far  advanced  for  the 
English  campaign.  James  listened  with  fierce  impatience  to 
their  objections,  and  retorted  with  sarcastic  reflections  on  the 
change  of  spirit  in  Scotsmen  who  could  allow  their  country  to 
be  insulted,  and  their  villages  burned,  by  the  Duke  of  Norfolk 
and  his  followers,  without  daring  to  retaliate.  He  found  they 
were  determined  not  to  fight  against  the  Ibes  of  Scotland,  but 
perfectly  in  the  mood  to  react  the  scene  of  the  bridge  of  Lau- 
der on  his  confidential  friends  and  adherents.  Dissensions  among 
the  leaders  of  this  revolt  alone  preserved  the  members  of  his 
cabinet  from  being  butchered  in  cold  blood,  for  disputes  took 
place  as  to  the  selection  of  the  victims  whom  to  slay  and  whom 
to  spare  ;  or,  to  use  the  regretful  expressions  of  Knox — "  But 
because  the  Lords  could  not  agree  among  themselves  upon  the 
persons  that  deserved  punishment,  for  every  man  favored  his 
friend,  the  whole  escaped,  and  the  purpose  was  opened  unto  the 
King."  ^  James  was  then  glad  to  allow  the  armament  to  disperse 
in  peace  to  their  own  homes,  and  with  a  swelling  heart  returned 
to  Holyrood.  He  held  his  last  council  there  on  the  2d  or  3d  of 
November  ;  his  ecclesiastical  premier  took  that  opportunity  of 
presenting  to  him  a  scroll,  containing  the  names  of  more  than 
a  hundred  of  the  principal  nobles  and  gentlemen  of  Scotland  who 
were  either  in  the  pay  of  England,  enleagued  with  the  Douglases 
in  treasonable  plots  against  his  life,  or  tainted  with  heresy — the 
last  accusation  being,  like  the  charge  of  sorcery,  a  convenient 
pretext  for  the  perpetration  of  cruelty,  spoil,  and  murder  on  persons 
inconvenient  to  the  prevailing  party  in  power.  Appended  to  this 
scroll  were  the  particulars  of  the  possessions  of  the  parties 
included  in  this  sweeping  denunciation.  A  similar  paper  had 
previously  been  presented  to  the  King  by  the  Cardinal  and  pre- 
lates, on  James's  return   from  his  memorable  cruise  round  the 

*  Knox's  Hist,  of  the  Reformation,  edited  by  D.  Laing,  vol.  i.  p.  80. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  369 

Isles,  after  the  first  accoucliement  of  his  Gliieen,  on  which  occasion, 
some  of  his  prelates  had  ventured  to  represent  what  profit,  in  a 
pecuniary  point  of  view,  might  arise  to  the  Crown  from  so  many 
rich  forfeitures.  But  the  high-spirited  monarch  replied,  with  a 
generous  burst  of  indignant  feeling,  "Pack  you,  ye  javellis  ;  ^  get 
you  to  your  charges,  and  reform  your  own  lives,  and  be  not  in- 
struments of  discord  betwixt  my  nobility  and  me,  or  else  I  avow 
to  God  I  shall  reform  you,  not  as  the  King  of  Denmark,  by  im- 
prisonment ;  neither  yet  as  the  King  of  England  doth,  by  hanging 
and  heading  ;  but  I  shall  reform  you  by  sharp  whingaris  (mean- 
ing by  the  slash  of  the  sv/ord),  if  ever  I  hear  such  motion  of  you 
again."  ^ 

James,  at  the  period  when  he  gave  this  stern  rebufi^  to  his 
Lords  spiritual,  contemplated  setting  about  the  much-needed 
work  of  reforming  the  abuses  of  the  church,  which  had  become 
far  more  intolerable  in  Scotland  than  in  England.  But  a  sov- 
ereign who  engages  in  a  crusade  like  that  should  enter  the  arena 
with  clean  hands,  and  singleness  of  heart ;  and  James,  by  thrust- 
ing his  base-born  sons  into  the  priesthood,  had  been  guilty  of  as 
great  abominations  as  any  of  those  which  cried  aloud  to  his  wis- 
dom as  a  legislator,  and  his  justice  as  a  king,  for  vengeance,  or  at 
least  for  purification. 

But  for  his  own  share  in  the  abuses  of  the  tottering  church, 
James  might  have  established  his  throne  in  righteousness  by 
becoming  the  champion  of  the  Reformation  on  conscientious 
grounds.  This  palm  his  misappropriation  of  the  fair  priories  of 
St.  Andrews,  Holyrood,  &c.,  prevented  him  from  seeking  to  win. 
Moreover,  the  ecclesiastical  powers,  perceiving  the  royal  M^eak- 
ness,  determined  to  circumvent  the  greedy  nobles  who  were  in 
wait  for  the  spoils  of  the  Church,  by  purchasing  the  protection 
of  the  sovereign  at  any  price.  They  opened  their  treasuries,  they 
laid  oblations  from  their  precious  things  at  his  feet,  they  pensioned 
him  and  bound  him  in  their  golden  fetters  till  they  induced  him 
to  sanction  their  persecutions.^ 

The  affront  James  had  received  from  his  nobles  at  Fala  Muir 

1  A  contemptuous  term  of  reproach  derived  from  the  word  javel  or  j [fell, 
jail,  and  literally  meaning  jtiil-birds. — Glossary  appended  to  Knox's  History 
of  the  Reformation,  edited  by  D.  Laing,  Esq, 

^  Knox's  History  of  the  Reformation.     Laing's  Edition.     Vol.  i.  p.  83. 

»  Knox.  Tytler. 


370  MARY    of     LORRAINE. 

threw  him  entirely  into  the  arms  of  the  priests,  through  whose 
means  he  was  enabled  to  raise  ten  thousand  men  without  the 
co-operation  of  his  disaffected  magnates.  He  then  condescended 
to  receive  the  scroll  of  denunciations  which  he  had  previously 
rejected,  with  a  generous  manifestation  of  contempt  for  the  in- 
cendiaries by  whom  it  was  presented.^ 

The  Q,ueen,  meantime,  having  again  good  hopes  of  repairing 
the  loss  of  her  children,  thought  to  secure  the  life  of  her  expected 
offspring  by  undertaking  a  pilgrimage  on  foot  to  Musselburgh, 
v/here  there  was  a  chapel  dedicated  to  the  virgin  of  Loretto,^ — • 
so  called  because  a  Scotch  hermit  had  brought  with  him,  from 
the  celebrated  shrine  of  Loretto  in  Italy,  a  copy  of  the  Virgin's 
picture.  This  he  said  he  was  commanded  to  do  by  a  supernatu- 
ral visitation,  which,  of  course,  he  gave  out  to  be  divine.  The 
King  and  several  of  his  lords  attended  the  Q,ueen  in  her  pedes- 
trian expedition  to  the  northern  lady  of  Loretto.  Some  say  they 
went  barefoot :  if  so,  this  may  account  for  the  King's  subsequent 
serious  illness.^  The  (Queen's  pilgrimage  occurred  just  before 
she  took  her  chamber,  a  short  time  previous  to  the  disastrous  in- 
vasion of  England. 

King  James,  though  he  had  many  loyal  barons  on  his  side,  had 
conceived  a  distrust  of  the  aristocratic  order  altogether,  and 
therefore  determined  to  invest  his  favorite  gentleman-in- waiting, 
Oliver  Sinclair,  with  the  command  of  the  army  which  he  had 
got  together  for  the  purpose  of  retaliating  the  insults  of  the 
English.  This  determination  he  kept  a  profound  secret,  and  for 
some  mysterious  reason  remained  at  Caerlaverock  Castle,  instead 
of  proceeding  with  the  expedition.  One  of  those  violent  pulmo- 
nary attacks  which  occasionally  precede  consumption  was  in  all 
probability  the  cause  wherefore  King  James  V.  suddenly  relin- 
quished the  command  of  the  fine  army  he  had  gathered  to  revenge 
the  English  aggressions.  A  letter  is  extant  to  his  Glueen,  ap- 
parently written  after  a  recent  parting.     It  has  no  date  of  time 

*  According  to  Knox,  this  document  was  found  in  the  King's  pocket  after 
his  death  ;  but  it  is  scarcely  probable  that  the  wily  premier,  Cardinal  Beton, 
took  no  more  care  of  his  royal  master's  private  papers  than  to  allow  one 
that  so  deeply  committed  himself  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  those  whose 
vengeance  it  was  calculated  to  provoke. 

^  Mackenzie's  Lives,  vol.  ii.  p.  592. 

'  There  are  allusions  to  this  superstition  in  the  State  Papers,  vol,  v. 


MARY     OF     LORRAINE.  371 

or  place,  but  from  its  incoherence,  and  complaints  of  illness,  may 
be  suitably  placed  at  this  crisis  : — 

"  James  Y.  to  his  Queex  Mary,  of  Lorraine,* 

"  I  have  received  the  letter  you  were  pleased  to  "write  to  me,  for  which  I 

thank  you  very  humbly,  assuring  you  that  your  man  will  not  be  oblige 

[Here  the  sense  breaks  off  abruptly — the  writing  was  resumed  after  his  recove- 
ry.] I  have  been  very  ill  these  three  days  past,  as  I  never  was  in  my  life ; 
but  God  be  thanked,  I  am  well.  Francois  will  tell  you  the  news  here,  and 
praying  our  Lord  to  grant  you  good  life  and  long, 

"  Your  humble  husband, 

"  James  R." 

Evidently  the  King's  convalescence  was  not  lasting,  yet  his 
youth  and  high  spirit  gave  him  hopes  of  soon  overtaking  his  forces, 
and  leading  them  to  victory.  We  consider,  having  carefully 
traced  James  V.  through  the  fluctuations  of  a  malady,  so  little 
understood  in  his  era,  that  he  appointed  Oliver  Sinclair,^  the 
oldest  and  most  trusted  gentleman  of  his  bedchamber,  merely  as 
locmn  tenens  in  the  command,  in  order  that  he  might  resume  it 
without  delay  when  his  health  rendered  it  possible.  Meantime 
the  Scottish  troops,  supposing  that  their  King  was  with  them,  and 
intended  to  be  his  own  general,  marched  with  spirit  and  order 
till  they  had  crossed  the  Esk.  So  formidable  was  their  demean- 
or, so  unexpected  their  appearance  on  the  English  border,  that 
great  alarm  was  excited  at  Carlisle.  However,  the  English  war- 
dens, Dacre  and  Musgrave,  did  their  duty  manfully  :  they 
gathered  a  hasty  muster  of  about  three  or  four  hundred  men,  and 
advanced  to  reconnoiter  the  hostile  array.  Then  Oliver  Sinclair, 
being  exalted  on  tiie  spears  of  his  followers,  probably  on  a  buck- 
ler, after  the  old  Teutonic  fashion,  displayed  the  royal  commission 
(declaring  him  the  King's  lieutenant-general  of  the  army,  and 
every  man  was  exhorted  to  obey  his  orders.      The  nobles  were 

*  Original  in  French — edited  from  the  Balcarres  Papers,  Register  Office, 
Edinburgh. 

'  Oliver  Sinclair  was  not  a  young  favorite,  but  an  old  attached  servant 
of  the  Crown.  "We  find  his  name  as  a  gentleman  of  the  bedchamber  when 
James  V.  was  an  infant.  That  he  was  a  cotemporary  of  Sir  David  Lindsay 
will  be  allowed  by  those  who  have  read  the  State  Papers,  where  he  is  repre- 
sented as  employed  in  matters  of  the  highest  trust  in  Queen  Margaret's 
stormy  regency. 


372  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

piqued  at  the  preference  being  given  to  him  whom  they  regarded 
"  as  a  fellow  of  no  reckoning,"  and  the  loyal  Lord  Maxwell  vainly 
endeavored  to  persuade  them  to  fight  for  the  honor  of  Scotland. 
Great  murmuring  and  disorder  took  place,  and  such  as  were 
willing  to  do  their  duty  called  in  vain  on  their  inexperienced 
leader  for  his  directions,  crying,  "  My  lord-lieutenant,  what  will 
ye  do  ?"  ^  Sinclair,  unacquainted  with  the  perilous  nature  of  the 
ground,  led  his  men  into  the  slimy  moss  of  the  Sol  way  :  the  tide 
was  rising,  as  it  does  once  in  the  twenty-four  hours,  with  resistless 
force  ;  panic  and  confusion  ensued.  He  was  taken  prisoner  with- 
out striking  a  blow,  and  the  most  disgraceful  defeat  that  had  eves 
vexed  a  Scottish  army  befell  on  that  disastrous  day. 

The  King's  mind,  which  had  been  shaken  irreparably  by  the 
death  of  his  infant  sons,  and  the  excitement  of  the  revolt  of  his 
nobles  at  Fala  Muir,  was  now  wholly  subverted.  Sleep  forsook 
him,  and  he  continually  reiterated  the  melancholy  ejaculation, 
"  Oh  fled  is  Oliver  !  Is  Oliver  ta'en  ?"  or  sunk  into  a  sort  of 
stupor  which  resembled  a  trance,  from  which  he  occasionally 
roused  himself  to  smite  his  breast  and  burst  into  paroxysms  of 
despair.  The  next  morning,  Nov.  25,  he  returned  to  Edinburgh, 
where  he  remained  till  the  30th,  incapable  of  business,  and  con- 
cealing himself  from  every  eye. 

The  dueen  was  then  at  Linlithgow,  where  she  had  taken  her 
chamber,  being  in  hourly  expectation  of  her  accouchement.  In- 
stead of  visiting  her  in  whose  soothing  endearments  he  might 
perhaps  have  found,  as  at  the  death  of  his  two  babes,  some  com- 
fort, he  avoided  her  presence,  and,  as  if  to  prevent  the  possibility 
of  her  coming  to  him,  the  King  stole  secretly  from  his  metropolis, 
and,  crossing  over  to  Fifeshire,  went  to  Hallyards,  the  residence 
of  his  treasurer's  wife,  the  Lady  Grange,  an  ancient  and  godly 
matron,  by  whom  he  was  received  with  respectful  sympathy. 
He  had  no  one  with  him  but  Sir  William  Kirkaldy  of  Grange, 
her  son,  and  some  of  the  gentlemen  of  his  bedchamber.  At 
supper,  his  venerable  hostess,  observing  his  depression,  began  to 
comfort  him,  entreating  him  to  take  the  will  of  God  in  good  part. 
"My  portion  of  this  world  is  short,"  he  mournfully  replied,  "for 
I  shall  not  be  with  you  fifteen  days."" 

*  Knox's  Hist.  Ref.     Tytler. 

'  Knox's  History  of  the  Reformation,  vol.  i.  p.  90. 


MARY    OF     LORRAINE.  373 

When  his  servants  came  to  inquire  of  him  where  he  would 
please  to  keep  his  Christmas  festival,  he  answered  with  a  bitter 
smile,  which  Knox  terms  "  ane  disdainful  smirk," — "  I  can  not 
tell — chuse  ye  the  place  ;  but  this,"  continued  he,  "I  ca7i  tell 
you,  ere  Yule  Day  ye  will  be  masterless,  and  the  realm  without 
a  king." 

A  low  nervous  fever  was  on  him,  attended  with  so  much  irri- 
tability that  no  one  durst  contradict  him  ;  but  ever  and  anon  he 
broke  forth  into  his  wonted  lamentation, — "  Fie,  fled  is  Oliver  I — 
is  Oliver  ta'en  ?"  '  These  mournful  words  were  probably  intend- 
ed as  the  refrain  of  some  ballad  lament  which  the  poet  king  was 
involuntarily  composing  in  his  madness.  Still  retiring,  as  if  from 
sheer  perverseness,  farther  and  farther  from  the  place  whither,  if 
his  mind  had  retained  its  natural  tone,  his  conjugal  and  paternal 
feelings  would  have  impelled  him  to  hasten,  he  withdrew  to  his 
palace  at  Falkland,  and  took  to  his  bed,  with  the  prophetic  dec- 
laration "that  he  should  rise  from  it  no  more." 

The  bitter  sense  of  humiliation — the  corrosive  agony  of  spirit 
that  had  overwhelmed  the  mind,  and  was  gnawing  away  the 
heartstrings,  of  the  once  gay  and  gallant  James  V.,  was  felt, 
though  in  a  less  poignant  degree,  throughout  the  land.  The 
disaster  at  Solway  was  worse  than  a  recurrence  of  the  fatal  day 
of  Flodden,  because  attended  with  national  dishonor  which  the 
loss  of  that  battle,  where  "  groom  fought  like  noble,  squire  like 
knight,  as  fearless  and  well,"  was  not  :  for  at  Solway  Moss  the 
Scotch,  engulfed  in  the  treacherous  sands,  or  struggling  with  the 
fatal  rising  of  the  tides,  had  no  opportunity  of  vindicating  their 
country  from  the  reproach  of  her  thousands  being  overthrown, 
and  her  nobles  led  captive  by  a  handful  of  hastily  raised  English 
militia.  The  loss,  coolly  considered,  was  not  great,  and  might 
have  been  easily  repaired  ;  but  the  spirit  of  the  King  was  broken, 
"  and  fearfulness  and  a  horrible  dread"  had  taken  hold  of  the 
people. 

Meanwhile  the  deserted  Gtueen  continued  in  the  retirement  of 
her  chamber  in  the  Palace  of  Linlithgow,  awaiting  the  pains  and 
perils  of  childbirth,  agitated  by  almost  hourly  reports  of  the  dis- 
tressing state  of  her  unhappy  consort,  and  precluded  by  her  own 
situation  from  hastening  to  his  comfort.     Mary  of  Lorraine  was 

*  Knox's  History  of  the  Reformation,  voL  i.  p.  90. 


374  MARY     OF     LORRAINE. 

at  that  period  an  object  of  affectionate  sympathy  to  the  people  ; 
for  her  conduct  as  a  wife  and  queen  had  been  unexceptionable  ; 
her  position  was  now  peculiarly  painful,  unsupported  by  the 
presence  of  mother,  sister,  or  husband, — a  widow  already  in 
every  thing  but  the  name,  yet  bearing  up  bravely  under  all  her 
trials,  for  the  sake  of  her  unborn  infant,  the  eagerly  desired  heir 
of  the  ancient  realm  of  Scotland. 


END    OF    VOL.    I. 


Harper  6l  Brothers^ 

IWt  Of  NiW  W0EI8. 


JUST  PUBLISHED. 


<~«4VSA^#  ^/^/VW 


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■^V  jStanbarb  National  iUork. 
HISTORY 

OF 

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